The Myth of GhostClan
by peofun1
Summary: Ghostfire dreams of founding GhostClan and becoming the new fifth Clan. As his quest to split off from the rest of the Clans threatens to start an all-Clan war, Mythsong tries to find a way to bring peace back to the forest...with or without GhostClan.
1. Allegiances

Allegiances

**ThunderClan**

**Leader: **Falconstar-Long-legged golden tabby tom (Seven lives, Mate: Gustflight)

**Deputy: **Blackfire-Black she-cat with white streaks on her face

Apprentice: Turtlepaw  
**  
Medicine Cat: **Featherglow-Pale golden she-cat

**Warriors: **Snakebite-Dark brown tabby tom

Scarstripe-Gray tom with three long scars on his left shoulder

Fargaze-Small gray she-cat with white chest and amber eyes (Mate: Chaosblast)

Flashinglight-Small gray-and-white tom with amber eyes

Magicnight-pretty calico she-cat with green eyes

Apprentice: Wingedpaw

Chaosblast-Burly brown tabby tom (Mate: Fargaze)

Dewdrop-White she-cat with yellow eyes

Sparklepool-Gray she-cat with speckles of white (Mate: Grassfur)

Ambereye-Dark ginger she-cat with one brown eye and one blue eye

Apprentice: Ivypaw

Grassfur-Pale ginger tom with black stripes (Mate: Sparklepool)

Wiseowl-Small light brown tom with green eyes

Apprentice: Crouchpaw

Ghostfire-Silver long-haired tom with pale blue eyes

Mythsong-Bright golden she-cat with deep blue eyes

**Apprentices: **Ivypaw-light brown she-cat with wavy darker stripes (Mother: Sparklepool)

Crouchpaw-Tall ginger tom (Mother: Sparklepool)

Wingedpaw-muscular gray she-cat with amber eyes (Mother: Fargaze)

Turtlepaw-small brown tabby tom with amber eyes (Mother: Fargaze)

**Queens: **Gustflight-Pretty silver she-cat (Mate: Falconstar)

**Elders: **Strippedfur-Dark brown tom with unusual white tabby stripes

Ticklewisker-Skinny gray tom

**Kits:** Rustlekit-Energetic golden tabby tom (Mother: Gustflight)

Nettlekit-Light brown tabby tom (Mother: Gustflight)

Swiftkit-Silver tabby with blue eyes (Mother: Gustflight)

**ShadowClan**

**Leader: **Fablestar (F, five lives)

**Deputy: **Shiverbranch (M)

**Medicine Cat: **Dancestep (M)

Apprentice: Sparrowpaw (F)

**Warriors: **Emberlight (F)

Apprentice: Icepaw (M)

Rainfall (M)

Apprentice: Fallpaw (M)

Dawnflash (F)

Slashwind (F)

Swiftclaw (M)

Forgottensong (F)

Harshwind (M)

Eternalstare (F)

Gemeye (F)

Cragtooth (M)

Apprentice: Longpaw (F)

**Queens: **Whitebark

**Elders: **Bravesong (M)

**WindClan**

**Leader: **Oakstar (M, six lives)

**Deputy: **Rustfur (F)

Apprentice: Truepaw (M)

**Medicine Cat: **Poppyspot (F)

**Warriors: **Snowstorm (F)

Apprentice: Mousepaw (F)

Marshstep (M)

Hailstorm (M)

Daybreak (F)

Stormdancer (M)

Leaffall (M)

Flutterwing (M)

Thrushflight (M)

Talltree (F)

Kindleflare (F)

Blackfang (F)

**Queens: **Jinglewind

**Elders: **Dropstep (M)

Nightfall (F)

**RiverClan**

**Leader:** Crescentstar (F, five lives)

**Deputy: **Ravenwing (M)

**Medicine Cat: **Cloudfur (M)

Apprentice: Glowingpaw (F)

**Warriors: **Longwhisker (M)

Apprentice: Shortpaw (M)

Runningstream (F)

Apprentice: Scalepaw (M)

Wavewind (F)

Strongwind (M)

Wakestorm (F)

Hurricaneforce (M)

Apprentice: Winkpaw (F)

Poolstep (F)

Duststorm (M)

Flowerspot (F)

Apprentice: Lionpaw (M)

**Queens: **Badgerface

Rushclaw

**Elders: **Kinktail (M)

**GhostClan**

**Leader:** Ghoststar-Silver long-haired tom with pale blue eyes (Nine lives)

**Deputy: **Ambereye-Dark ginger she-cat with one brown eye and one blue eye

Apprentice: Ivypaw

**Medicine Cat: **Sparrowflight-Small pale ginger she-cat with a dappled coat

**Warriors: **Snakebite-Dark brown tabby tom

Apprentice: Turtlepaw

Scarstripe-Gray tom with three long scars on his left shoulder

Fargaze-Small gray she-cat with white chest and amber eyes (Mate: Chaosblast)

Chaosblast-Burly brown tabby tom (Mate: Fargaze)

Dawnflash-Creamy yellow she-cat

Slashwind-Black she-cat with a white belly

Apprentice: Longpaw

Swiftclaw-Dark brown tabby tom with yellow eyes

Apprentice: Fallpaw

Flutterwing-Jittery gray tom with blue eyes (Mate-Jinglewind)

Flowerspot-tortoiseshell she-cat with pale green eyes

Apprentice: Lionpaw

Hurricaneforce-Sturdy black tom with yellow eyes

Apprentice: Winkpaw

**Apprentices: **Ivypaw- light brown she-cat with wavy darker stripes

Longpaw-long-legged black tom

Fallpaw-clumsy gray tabby tom

Lionpaw-pale ginger tom with deep amber eyes

Winkpaw-small golden she-cat with folded ears

Turtlepaw-small brown tabby tom with amber eyes (Mother: Fargaze)

**Queens: **Jinglewind-pretty dappled she-cat with a white chest and paws

**Elders: **None

**Kits:** Littlekit-very small gray she-cat

Sleetkit-Dark gray tabby tom with blue eyes

Bouncekit-energetic dappled she-cat


	2. Prologue

The Myth of GhostClan: Prologue

_Gather around, young kittens, and this old elder will tell you a story. Would you like to hear about how Firestar defeated BloodClan, or how he led the Clans to the lake? No? How about the ancient cats who used to live around the lake before us? Maybe you'd like the story of Cometstar, who led ThunderClan to defeat a terrifying grizzly bear._

_You've heard all these before, have you? Now don't give me that look, Wavekit. I've got a story here that I guarantee none of you have ever heard before. Let me tell you the myth…Of GhostClan._

_What's that? You've never heard of GhostClan, have you? Well, make yourselves comfortable and this old elder here will tell you all about it…_

_It all started many moons ago, before even I was born…_

…"Ghostpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend this Clan, even at the cost of your life?"

Pale blue eyes glittered smugly from the face of the silvery tom cat as he answered his leader's question with undeniable certainty. "I do."

The taller golden cat met the steady gaze of the soon-to-be warrior, his own blue eyes sparkling with pride. Falconstar let his son's words ring through the clearing before continuing, "Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Ghostpaw, from this moment you will be known as Ghostfire. StarClan honors your determination and boundless energy, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan." He rested his muzzle on Ghostfire's head, and the new warrior licked his leader and father's shoulder respectfully.

Falconstar stepped back and motioned to the smaller apprentice who was still sitting by her mentor. The golden she-cat rose gracefully to her paws and stepped up before her leader, their identical pelts shining in the setting sun. With a swell of pride, Falconstar repeated the ceremony for this new warrior: "I, Falconstar, leader of ThunderClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on this apprentice. She has trained hard to understand the ways of your code, and I commend her to you as a warrior in her turn. Mythpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code, even at the cost of your life?"

"I do."

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Mythpaw, from this moment you will be known as Mythsong. StarClan honors your quick thinking and patience, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan." Falconstar rested his head gently on his daughter's head, and she licked his shoulder just as her brother had.

"Ghostfire! Mythsong!" the cats rang out, wreathing around their new warriors and adding their own words of congratulations to the siblings. When the rest of his Clan started to disperse and return to their own duties, Falconstar padded over to his kits, purring loudly.

"Well done, you two." the leader rumbled, touching his nose to the nose of each new warrior. "I can't remember ever being this proud in my life." His blue eyes darkened suddenly and he glanced at the darkening sky. "If only Racepaw could be here with you."

"Don't say that, Father. Racepaw is watching us from StarClan." Mythsong mewed anxiously, pressing her muzzle against Falconstar's. The pain of her brother's death still glimmered dully in her eyes like a battle wound that wouldn't heal. Ghostfire lashed his tail angrily but didn't say anything.

"Besides," a new voice purred as a plump silver she-cat approached from the direction of the nursery. "Your three newest brothers will be ready to be apprenticed in no time."

"I hope not, Gustflight." Falconstar laughed, licking his mate's ears affectionately. "They were only born three sunrises ago! I'd rather play with them as fluffy kits before we have to worry about them in battle."

Ghostfire twitched his nose. "We're _warriors_ now, Father. You don't have to always be worrying about us." he mewed scornfully.

The leader butted his head against his son's shoulder playfully. "Of course I know that. It doesn't stop me from worrying, though." He stepped back and raised his chin proudly, regaining his position of authority. "In a way, being leader makes me father to all of ThunderClan. I watch over each cat as though they were my own."

Ghostfire suppressed the urge to roll his eyes and Mythsong laughed. Falconstar softened as well, unable to hold back his purrs at seeing his eldest kits grown into full-fledged warriors. "In any case," The leader continued, "You two have a little while before your vigil starts, so you'd best get some rest or have some fresh-kill. You have a long night ahead of you to think about your lives as warriors." With that, he and Gustflight disappeared into the nursery.

The two siblings, deciding they weren't hungry, settled themselves into the spots where they would sit vigil, trying to get comfy before the night began. "So," Mythsong began, "What do you think it will be like being a warrior?" Her deep blue eyes, dyed almost purple by the red glow of the setting sun, searched her brother's always guarded gaze. Ghostfire always tried to seem so tough and independent, but Mythsong knew him better than anyone, save for maybe Racepaw.

But tonight his usually emotionless stare betrayed churning emotions behind the pale blue eyes, and Mythsong shuddered at the plans she saw hatching inside Ghostfire's calculating mind. "I won't be a warrior for long." her brother mewed matter-of-factly. "I'm going to be leader."

Mythsong twitched her whiskers in disbelief. "That _will_ take a long time though. You have to be deputy before leader, and before that you have to have an apprentice." she pointed out. "Besides, ThunderClan already has a deputy, and Falconstar isn't going anywhere anytime soon, thank StarClan."

Ghostfire turned his gaze away from Mythsong's and stared up at the first beginnings of stars in the gathering darkness. He let a few heartbeats of silence pass between the two, as if pondering how much he should reveal to her. Finally, Ghostfire retorted, "I won't be leader of ThunderClan. I am going to start my own Clan." His voice was icily calm, and said with such utter certainly that Mythsong found herself unable to deny him, she was so taken aback.

"Mark my words, before a moon has passed, I will be Ghoststar, leader of GhostClan."

---

Alright, I've got this story all planned out. I know exactly what will happen in every chapter, and how it will end. I'll try to keep updates fairly regular; once or twice a week.

Hope you like it!

~Please review~


	3. Chapter One

Chapter One

The first streaks of dawn spread their fingers over the quiet forest, chasing the almost-full moon the last few tail-lengths below the treetops. Blackfire, the ThunderClan deputy and Mythsong's former mentor, emerged from the warriors' den with Scarstripe and Ambereye trailing behind her. Ambereye broke off from the other two and went to gather her apprentice Ivypaw from the apprentices' den. Blackfire approached the two new warriors still standing watch near the entrance to the camp.

"Your vigil is over, you two." the black deputy murmured. "Go get a good sleep, now. Falconstar already told me you'll both be coming to the Gathering tonight." With that, Blackfire gathered her dawn patrol around her and padded confidently out of the camp.

Excitement flared in Mythsong's chest. Her first Gathering as a full warrior! She couldn't wait to see some of her acquaintances from the other Clans and brag to them. Maybe some of them would be warriors, too…

Mythsong looked over at her brother to discuss this exciting news, but the look in his eyes made her flinch. Ghostfire's pale blue eyes were malicious and calculating. What could he possibly be planning for the gathering? The promise he'd made before their vigil began rang in her ears as loudly as if he'd just repeated it. Would he really try to disrupt the Gathering?

While she would have loved to try and talk him out of it, Mythsong was suddenly struck with how tired she was. She staggered to one side, suddenly unsteady on her own paws. A warm pelt brushed against hers, and Ghostfire's familiar scent flooded her nose as he pressed against Mythsong's shoulder to support her. "Are you alright?" her brother asked, his brow wrinkled in concern. Mythsong felt herself relax. This was the Ghostfire she knew.

"Yeah," she mumbled, suppressing a yawn. "Just tired and stiff. It was a long night."

Ghostfire nodded and led her the last few steps to the warriors' den. They stepped gingerly over the still sleeping cats, careful not to tread on anyone's tail as they searched for free nests. All of the spots near the center were occupied by the senior warriors, who would not be willing to give up their spots until they retired. Around the edge of the den a few spots were still open. Mythsong and Ghostfire settled themselves in side-by-side next Scarstripe and Snakebite, who had been the newest warriors before the ceremony last night.

Snuggling into her new nest with her brother's scent wreathing around her, Mythsong could have almost sworn she was back in the nursery. A pang of regret coursed through her as she realized her other brother, Racepaw, should have been there with them. Had it already been two moons since he had died?

Racepaw had been the fastest apprentice in the Clan, easily able to outrun even the swiftest WindClan cat. Everyone had praised and admired his fantastic skill at hunting rabbits, and though some said he'd be better suited as a WindClan cat, Racepaw was intensely loyal to ThunderClan and his siblings. The three of them, Mythsong, Ghostfire and Racepaw were hardly ever seen apart when they could help it, going out on as many patrols together as they could. While the three got into as much mischief as a bunch of unruly kits, every cat in the Clan was proud to boast of each sibling's unique skills. Ghostfire was as slick and cunning as a fox, and Mythsong was an exceptional tactician and hunter. Racepaw was, of course, the fastest runner in the Clan, and despite the fact that he was born deaf in one ear, was also the finest hunter in the Clan. Perhaps even the whole forest.

The three sibling apprentices had been out hunting together when Ghostfire had picked up the scent of a badger. Although it was an old one, and alone, Mythsong had insisted they go back to get a warrior. They were only apprentices, after all. Racepaw, being the fastest, had volunteered to run back to camp and alert Falconstar of the danger while Ghostfire and Mythsong attempted to locate it.

Only after Racepaw had bolted away did Mythsong double-check the trail that Ghostfire had found, and discovered too late that the badger had been heading in the direction that Racepaw had just run off in. Just then, Racepaw's strangled cry had pierced the air and Mythsong realized the gravity of Ghostfire's mistake. When the two caught up with their brother, Racepaw was already dead in the jaws of the irate badger.

Though the two had brutally killed the badger in their rage, avenging Racepaw's death did not bring him back. The entire Clan grieved for the fallen apprentice, but none more than Ghostfire and Mythsong. _Is that when this all started?_ Mythsong thought to herself as she rested her head on her paws. Ghostfire hadn't been the same since their brother had died. He'd grown quieter than ever, and suddenly preferred to be off by himself. Mythsong knew he blamed himself for Racepaw's death, but had Ghostfire's grief driven him so mad that he thought he could start a new Clan?

While the thought was a worrying one, Mythsong didn't have time to ponder it. Sleep soon overtook her, smothering any more thoughts she had on the subject. She fell into a fitful sleep.

---

A paw prodded her awake all too soon. Blinking blearily, Mythsong looked up into the sparkling emerald eyes of Wiseowl. His pale brown pelt was already nicely groomed and shining in the dim light of the warrior's den. "Come on, Mythsong." the older warrior mewed softly. "Falconstar called us all to get ready for the Gathering. You don't want to get left behind, do you?" He flicked her lightly with his tail and slipped carefully out of the den.

Mythsong stood and shook the various things clinging to her pelt away, then began to groom her ruffled fur. Her head was pounding as if she'd just been pummeled by an angry fox. Dreams full of swirling fire and screaming cats had filled her sleep, and though she knew she was safe and sound in the ThunderClan camp, Mythsong couldn't stop shaking. Looking around for someone to confide in, Mythsong saw that Ghostfire was already gone. _He must be out in the clearing already…_ she thought miserably. Telling him about her dreams would have to wait.

Finally Mythsong dared to venture out of the den into the moonlit main clearing of the camp. The rest of the cats going to the Gathering were already seated around in front of Highledge, where Falconstar was speaking to them about the upcoming meeting. Ghostfire was at the very front of the group, sandwiched between Snakebite and Scarstripe. Feeling disgruntled, Mythsong went instead to sit beside Wiseowl. He gave her an approving glance as she sat, and then turned his attention back to Falconstar.

"Remember, we don't want to say anything that may upset the other Clans." Falconstar was reminding his warriors. "Don't say anything about the recent skirmishes with WindClan. We're on bad enough terms with them, and I'd rather not make it any worse."

"Aren't you planning to say anything to Oakstar about it?" Ghostfire asked forcefully, his pale eyes glinting in the moonlight.

The tall leader narrowed his eyes at his son, thinking for a moment. "No." he replied finally. "It would be pointless to start an argument at the Gathering. Oakstar already knows what's been happening, and it's a matter I'd rather sort out in private."

Ghostfire snorted derisively and looked away, whispering something to Scarstripe. They seemed awful chummy all of a sudden. The three toms seemed to be plotting something, but Mythsong couldn't imagine what. Could it have something to do with this 'GhostClan' plan?

"If there are no more questions, then let's get going." Falconstar leapt down from the ledge and flicked his tail to gather his cats. They filed out one-by-one through the thorn-covered entrance out into the dark forest. Falconstar took the lead with his most senior warrior and deputy, Blackfire and Ambereye. The rest of the patrol fanned out behind them as they made their way confidently through their forest.

Crouchpaw and Ivypaw trailed along at the back, looking excited at the aspect of their first Gathering. Scarstripe, Snakebite and Ghostfire pounded along through the territory just ahead of the apprentices, still deep in conversation. Mythsong thought briefly of going back and finding out what they were talking about, but Wiseowl raced up next to her before she could.

"Are you excited?" he asked, his eyes gleaming. "I remember how happy I was when Falconstar announced my name in front of the whole Gathering."

"Yeah," Mythsong breathed. "I can't wait to tell all my friends. I'm a real warrior now!" All her worries were suddenly forgotten at the thought of the Gathering. She hadn't been to one since before Racepaw had died. Anything before that terrible event seemed like an eternity ago, rather than just a few moons.

Falconstar and his patrol raced through WindClan territory, careful to stay two tail-lengths from the edge of the lake. Though this rule had been decreed long before any living cat had been born, the ThunderClan cats were still wary of being in their enemy's territory. Relations between ThunderClan and WindClan had been shaky as long as any cat could remember, and both Clans liked to pick fights with each other.

Three moons ago, a WindClan apprentice chased and killed a rabbit in ThunderClan territory. A ThunderClan patrol found him, but he spooked and raced back towards his territory. The patrol gave chase and caught up to him by the river. The apprentice was in such a rush to get back to his territory that his paws slipped and he fell into the river and drowned.

WindClan blamed ThunderClan, and despite Falconstar's attempts to smooth things over, launched an attack on ThunderClan. The raid was met at the boarder before they could reach ThunderClan's camp, and a fearsome battle took place there. Another WindClan cat was killed in the battle, adding to WindClan's rage. Since then, every time the two Clans had met on the boarder while hunting or patrolling, a battle had broken out. A ThunderClan cat called Roarfall had been killed about a moon ago, and Falconstar was afraid that if something wasn't done more cats would die.

But the patrol passed unharmed over WindClan's rolling hills, arriving safely at the Twoleg barn. Mythsong hadn't caught even a whiff of WindClan scent, and she wondered if they were already on the island. She eyed the small speck of land warily, and saw lithe shapes flitting in and out of the shadows of the trees. As ThunderClan approached the fallen tree used to cross onto the island, Mythsong picked up the scents of RiverClan and WindClan. It seemed that ShadowClan was yet to arrive.

Falconstar jumped up onto the slippery log and padded across easily. Blackfire and Grassfur followed him, weaving between the tangled branches of the ancient tree. A nose nudged Mythsong and she looked around at Wiseowl, who pointed to the tree with his tail. Taking it as a signal to go before him, Mythsong scrambled up through the roots of the tree, digging her claws into the rotten bark.

Steeling herself, Mythsong began to pad forward slowly. She hated crossing this stupid tree. Being even a tail-length off the ground was enough to make her sick, and being over water was even worse. Fighting down her vertigo, Mythsong forced herself to cross the tree and was relieved when she jumped down onto dry land again. Falconstar licked her ears comfortingly as Wiseowl landed behind them with a gentle thud.

Once all the ThunderClan cats were gathered on the shore, Falconstar yowled to announce their presence to the other Clans. The patrol swarmed through the trees and into the clearing where the Gathering would take place. While the leader and Blackfire went to take their places around the great stooping oak tree in the center, Mythsong looked around for some of her old acquaintances. She spotted a couple of familiar RiverClan cats and went to join them.

"Hey guys!" Mythsong greeted them when they looked up at her. "How's things in RiverClan?"

A pale silver she-cat purred and touched noses with Mythsong. "Fine, as always." She replied. "Guess what? We're warriors now!"

"I'm called Poolstep now." Her sister, an identical silver she-cat mewed, puffing out her chest importantly. "And this is Wavewind."

"That's great, Poolstep!" Mythsong congratulated them. "I'm a warrior too. My name is Mythsong, and my brother is Ghostfire. He's over there…" She pointed with her nose, trailing off as she spotted her brother deep in conversation with Scarstripe, Snakebite, a RiverClan cat called Flowerspot, and a WindClan cat called Flutterwing. Mythsong felt her heart sink like a stone. What could her brother possibly be planning with those cats?

Her thoughts were interrupted by a yowl from the direction of the tree bridge as ShadowClan cats flooded the clearing. Their leader Fablestar, raced across the clearing and jumped up into one of the low-hanging branches of the great oak tree. The other leaders followed her quickly while their deputies sat on the roots. Falconstar chose a sweeping branch above Blackfire, while Oakstar, WindClan's leader, found one far from the ThunderClan leader. Crescentstar, RiverClan's leader, found a spot between Fablestar and Oakstar, blinking down contentedly at the assembled Clans.

The Gathering was about to begin.

---

Ghostfire moves fast! Hardly a warrior for a day, and already he's out finding cats to join his new Clan. This is not a kithood fantasy; Ghostfire is determined to get what he wants. The next chapter will be from his point of view, and hopefully this will be made clear.

I'll be busy most of this week, so I'll put up this chapter now. I've got up to chapter four already done, so it's just a matter of when I can upload them.

Please review.


	4. Chapter Two

Chapter Two

"You're crazy, all of you." Flutterwing hissed, sure to keep his voice low while discussing with cats from enemy Clans. "How can you think you can start a new Clan? StarClan will never allow it!"

"Why not?" Ghostfire retorted coolly, his pale eyes glinting like pieces of ice. He was crouched at the edge of the Gathering with Scarstripe and Snakebite at his shoulders. Cats were still milling about waiting for ShadowClan to arrive. Content that they wouldn't be overheard by the distracted leaders, Ghostfire continued, "There's nothing in the Warrior Code about starting new Clans, is there? Besides, once there were five Clans in the forest."

"Th-That was forever ago!" the WindClan cat spluttered, shaking his head. "SkyClan left the forest seasons before the rest of the Clans did."

Scarstripe growled angrily, but Ghostfire flicked his tail to hold him back. "If you do not want to be a part of GhostClan, suit yourself." The silver tom mewed softly. "I have plenty of warriors already."

"Who is part of this Clan besides yourself and these two?" Flowerspot, a pretty dapple RiverClan cat, asked serenely. Next to the excitable Flutterwing, she was the perfect picture of calm. "A Clan of three or four is not a Clan."

Ghostfire's lips curled back slightly, showing perfect white fangs. "Of course, a Clan of three is nothing. I assure you I have far more warriors willing to join me then just that." Sitting up gracefully, Ghostfire swept his gaze around the assembled cats. "My sister, Mythsong, will of course be joining us. She will not refuse me. Then—"

Before he could finish naming his warriors a yowl sounded and ShadowClan joined the Gathering. Ghostfire hissed irritably. How was he to gain followers if he was always interrupted? As annoyed as he was, Ghostfire didn't want to look disrespectful. He straightened up and fixed a look of excitement on his carefully controlled facial features.

Fablestar stood on her branch, indicating that she wished to speak first. "Greetings, cats of all Clans!" the ShadowClan leader began. Her pale gray fur was turned to silver fire in the bright light of the full moon. "ShadowClan has been growing strong this Greenleaf. We are proud to announce the naming of three new warriors; Dawnflash, Slashwind and Swiftclaw!"

Yowls of approval went up from the assembled cats. The three new warriors lifted their head proudly, reveling in the attention. Hungry pale blue eyes followed their every movement as they sat again. _The younger warriors are the most ambitious._ Ghostfire thought to himself. _I'll have to get to know these three better…_Vaguely he remember speaking with a ShadowClan cat named Dawnpaw once. She'd seemed to have liked him a lot.

When the cheering had died down, Fablestar nodded to Crescentstar and sat down. The RiverClan leader stood and addressed the gathered Clans, "RiverClan is also thriving in this Greenleaf. A litter of kits was born to Rushclaw not long ago. They will one day be great warriors." She waited for the renewed yowls to die down before continuing, "We also have two new apprentices with us today: Lionpaw and Glowingpaw. Glowingpaw is the new medicine cat apprentice."

Flowerspot raised her chin slightly at the mention of the apprentices. "Lionpaw is my first apprentice." she murmured to Ghostfire. His ears perked up with interest. "He is very talented."

Oakstar stood next, shooting Falconstar a sharp look, as if daring him to challenge him to speak next. When Falconstar only flicked his ears in resignation Oakstar growled, "The prey is running well in WindClan, though not too fast for us to catch within our borders." He gave Falconstar another pointed look before finishing, "We have nothing of consequence to report, however." With that, he sat down again, flattening his ears as Falconstar stood.

The ThunderClan leader swept his stunning blue eyes over the clearing. "ThunderClan is proud to announce that we also have two new warriors here with us today: Ghostfire and Mythsong!" Falconstar announced warmly, setting his gaze on his two kits in turn. Ghostfire saw Mythsong stretch up proudly and he hurried to mimic her. Though the appreciation of the other Clans meant nothing to him, keeping up appearances was important.

When the clearing fell silent again, Falconstar added, "We also have three new kits, born to Gustflight. I am certain they will be warriors that ThunderClan can be proud of one day." He closed his eyes briefly, then finished, "ThunderClan has nothing else to report."

"Then this Gathering is over!" Crescentstar yowled. She leapt down lightly from the tree and gathered her warriors around her.

A pelt brushed against Ghostfire's and he looked over at Flowerspot. "If you can find a territory for us, I will be willing to bring myself and my apprentice into your Clan." the dappled she-cat whispered, her eyes glowing. "Good luck, Ghostfire." Then she raced away after her Clan.

"What about you?" Snakebite hissed, directing his question at Flutterwing, who flinched.

"W-Well, I guess if you can find a place for us to live, then I can't complain." The jittery WindClan cat consented. "I will see if I can get my mate to agree as well. She's just given birth to three healthy kits."

"You and your kits would be very welcome in GhostClan." Ghostfire mewed warmly. "Kits are the future of any Clan." Flutterwing nodded, letting himself look proud for a moment. He looked around when Oakstar called, and bid the ThunderClan cats farewell under the glares of his Clanmates.

Fablestar seemed to be giving her warriors a few moments to socialize to make up for arriving last. She was seated with Falconstar at the base of the ancient oak tree, chatting with him and the deputies. Sending a silent prayer to StarClan to give him enough time, Ghostfire craned his neck over the heads of cats to find the newest ShadowClan warriors. He spotted them not far off and slipped away to join them, Snakebite and Scarstripe following as well.

"Greetings and congratulations." Ghostfire purred as he approached the three siblings. They looked around at him warily, but Ghostfire noticed Dawnflash's eyes light up when she recognized him. "You will certainly make a great contribution to whatever Clan you choose to be loyal to."

"That's a strange way to put it." Swiftclaw growled suspiciously. "Do you doubt our loyalty to ShadowClan? Let me tell you, we'd never join ThunderClan!"

Ghostfire laughed quietly. "No, of course not." He assured the ruffled tom. "I just don't believe that loyalty must be to one's birth Clan. Situations change."

Swiftclaw looked like he was going to protest again, but before he could Fablestar's cry rang out across the clearing. The three ShadowClan warriors excused themselves and raced away to join their leader. A dangerous smile crossed Ghostfire's face. It would be easy to gain their support.

Falconstar called his Clan last, leading them across the fallen tree-bridge only once ShadowClan was already gone. As they began the long journey back to their own territory, Mythsong broke out of a conversation with Wiseowl to drop back with her brother. "What were you doing with that WindClan cat?" she asked uncertainly, her deep blue eyes troubled.

Ghostfire shrugged. "I was only looking for more warriors to join GhostClan." he replied matter-of-factly. There was no point in hiding his plans from his sister. There was no doubt in his mind that Mythsong would be GhostClan's first deputy. Excluding her from the recruiting processes would only hinder GhostClan's strength.

However Mythsong looked only more troubled at this news. Her brow wrinkled with concern and she wouldn't meet her brother's eyes. _Perhaps she is still a little uncertain about allowing WindClan cats to join._ Ghostfire assured himself. The thought that perhaps his sister would refuse to leave ThunderClan with him was one he refused to acknowledge.

Ever since Racepaw's death, Ghostfire had been harboring the desire to break away from the other Clans. Every decision Falconstar made seemed weak and indecisive, every patrol he went on seemed more and more pointless. Ghostfire was convinced the only way to fill the life Racepaw left behind was to become leader of his own Clan. While to any other cat his logic would seem twisted and rash, to Ghostfire's mind it made perfect sense. _I'm living for Racepaw too, now._ He would tell himself every time his resolve began to falter. _Not just for myself._

The ThunderClan patrol reached the camp safely, but Ghostfire didn't follow them into the clearing. Sure that no one would notice his absence during the after-Gathering confusion, the silver tom stole away towards ShadowClan territory. There were three more warriors he needed to recruit.

---

Ghostfire isn't evil, just a little twisted. This will become more and more apparent as the story progresses.

Not much to say about this chapter. It's rather short, but I like it. The next chapter will be from Mythsong's point of view again!

Please review.


	5. Chapter Three

Chapter Three

Soft light filtered weakly in through the branches of the warrior's den. The day was already warming up, though the sun had hardly rose. Leaf-bare seemed far away, and a long Greenleaf to grow strong was welcomed by the Clans. Stretching happily, Mythsong batted a piece of moss between her paws, feeling lazy. Usually she was up at dawn, ready to go, but today she felt more like sunning herself out in the clearing.

She turned to her brother, thinking of asking him to join her, but he was curled up tightly in his nest, sound asleep. Vaguely, Mythsong remembered him coming into the den very late, after everyone else had settled in. Stretching towards him, she sniffed him carefully and wrinkled her nose at the scent of ShadowClan. What had Ghostfire been doing in ShadowClan territory?

Her swirling thoughts were interrupted as a familiar brown head poked into the den. "Hey, Mythsong!" Wiseowl greeted her happily. "I just got back from a patrol but I'm still full of energy. Want to come hunting with me?" His bright green eyes sparkled with life, and Mythsong felt energy flooding from him in waves. Just seeing him so worked up was enough to wake Mythsong out of her lethargic state.

"Where should we go?" Mythsong asked the older cat as they emerged into the bright morning sunlight. The camp was full of life as cats hurried to make the most of the day before the hottest part at sunhigh. She saw Ivypaw and Crouchpaw sparring outside the apprentice den while Ambereye and Blackfire looked on. Sparklepool and Dewdrop were sharing tongues by fresh-kill pile.

As they passed, Mythsong saw Dewdrop give shoot her a glare out of the corner of her eye. With a jolt, Mythsong realized that she and Wiseowl used to spend a lot of time together. Was the older she-cat jealous? Feeling anger bubble up inside her, Mythsong returned the glare with a steady look. _You can still have him._ She wanted to hiss. _It's not as if I'm stealing him away. We're just friends._ Hardly even that. They'd only started hanging out a few days ago.

"I thought we could try over by the WindClan border." Wiseowl replied to her question, startling Mythsong out of her thoughts yet again. "Because of the recent hostility, we haven't hunted over there much. I'm sure there'll be a lot of prey."

The thought of venturing so close to WindClan made her shudder, but Mythsong didn't want to express her worries to Wiseowl. "Alright, we'll just have to be careful." She meowed. Then nudging him playfully with her muzzle, she added, "I bet I can beat you there!" and raced out of camp, the laughing brown warrior hard on her heels.

Mythsong skidded to a halt as she reached the river that began the border with WindClan. Wiseowl bounded up next to her not long after, his eyes gleaming. "You had a head start!" He chided her good-humoredly.

"Or I'm just a faster runner!" Mythsong retorted, flicking the older—yet smaller—warrior with her tail. "Maybe you should grow some longer legs."

Wiseowl rolled his eyes, but before he could reply he angled his ears to one side and dropped to a crouch. As he began to slide forward slowly, Mythsong craned her neck to catch a glimpse of the water vole he was stalking. Suddenly Wiseowl shot forward, splashing into the river and emerging from the water with the vole clenched in his jaws.

"Nice catch!" Mythsong purred as he buried it to come back for later. The brown tom nodded, then stepped to the side to shake water from his fur without spraying her.

Wiseowl had been right; there seemed to be plenty of prey out and about on this side of the territory. Not long after his first vole, Wiseowl caught a squirrel and a fat thrush. Mythsong caught a mouse when she practically tripped over it, then managed to chase down the biggest rabbit she'd ever seen.

Another mouse was waiting to get caught when Mythsong caught a whiff of a WindClan patrol. She raised her head and hissed to Wiseowl, "I scent WindClan!" She felt the fur on her shoulders bristling as she spotted three lithe shapes loping over the hills towards them.

Wiseowl was bristling as well. "They wouldn't dare cause us trouble, would they?" He growled, digging his claws into the soft earth. "We haven't done anything! Every bit of prey we caught was on our side of the border!"

"Somehow I think they won't see it that way." Mythsong muttered. She flinched slightly as one of the approaching WindClan cats let out a challenging caterwaul, and the patrol raced towards the border.

"ThunderClan! What are you doing here?" the head of the patrol, a fluffy white cat called Snowstorm demanded. Behind her Thrushflight, a wiry dark tabby and an apprentice called Mousepaw were bristling angrily, lashing their tails.

Wiseowl stepped forward with his chin held high. "We're hunting for our Clan, on _our_ side of the border." he meowed, his voice polite but curt. "Please don't let us hold you up. We'll be on our way." He turned quickly, beckoning Mythsong with his tail.

"Not so fast!" Thrushflight snarled. Mythsong froze in her tracks in spite of herself. "We're tired of finding you ThunderClan cats always hanging around our border! Why don't we teach you a lesson?" He and his Clanmates started to advance menacingly.

"What's going on?" To Mythsong's relief, a ThunderClan patrol had heard them and was approaching, Blackfire in the lead. The deputy's eyes burned with anger as she drew her self up on ThunderClan's side of the border, facing the WindClan cats. Scarstripe, Grassfur and Ivypaw lined up behind the black deputy, hissing at their enemies.

Snowstorm surveyed the newcomers warily for a moment, seeing she was now outnumbered. She gathered her warriors with a flick of her tail. Reluctantly, the WindClan patrol turned and raced back over the hill.

"What was that all about?" Grassfur growled once the WindClan cats had disappeared from sight.

Blackfire narrowed her eyes as Wiseowl recounted the story of how the WindClan cats had been antagonizing them. "This problem with WindClan really needs to be mended." the deputy murmured. "We can't be afraid to approach the border for fear of being attacked…"

Just as the words left her lips, a screech sounded from over the hill. More WindClan cats poured down the side of the hill and threw themselves at the surprised ThunderClan cats. Mythsong let out a yowl of pain as a huge mottled tom crashed into her, bowling her over and pinning her down. Claws sharp as thorns raked through her belly fur, drawing out another anguished shriek.

Suddenly remembering her battle training, Mythsong twisted violently beneath her enemy, rolling onto her stomach. Once she found her paws beneath her, she sprang upwards, throwing the bigger warrior off with all her might. He landed a few tail-lengths away, dazed, and Mythsong took the chance to rip her claws along his side. With a howl, the tom jerked away from her claws and pounded away, back into his own territory.

Raising her head proudly, Mythsong surveyed the rest of the battle. She realized with a jolt that the other cats were not having as much success driving off her attackers. Blackfire was backed into a corner, valiantly slashing at the noses of Snowstorm and Thrushflight, while a few steps away Grassfur was struggling with a bright ginger she-cat. Wiseowl had pinned down his attacker, a black she-cat with white paws, but before he could give her a nip to send her howling, Mythsong saw another she-cat rearing back behind him.

"Look out!" Mythsong surged forward, barreling head-first into the she-cat's stomach, knocking her off balance. She landed in an undignified heap, but before she could right herself Mythsong was on top of her, slashing her claws through the WindClan cat's tabby fur. The scrawny tabby screeched and tried to wriggle away, but Mythsong held her down. Only after she'd given her some good blows to the ears did Mythsong finally let her opponent go.

Just as the tabby she-cat fled, an angry yowl sounded from the ThunderClan forest. Falconstar raced out from between the trees and launched himself into the battle. Ambereye, Dewdrop, Chaosblast, Ghostfire, Magicnight, Wingedpaw, Crouchpaw and Ivypaw pounded after him and threw themselves at the remaining WindClan cats. Renewed energy flooded Mythsong and she threw herself at the closest enemy.

Soon the WindClan cats began to retreat, running back to their territories with frightened yowls. Falconstar leaped at an apprentice as he tried to flee, pinning the smaller cat down. "Give a message to Oakstar. This feud ends _now._ Tell him to meet me at the Moonpool tomorrow at sundown, and to bring only his medicine cat." The ThunderClan leader's blue eyes blazed with fury as the thrust his muzzle into the terrified apprentice's face. Mythsong couldn't remember ever seeing him so angry. "If he refuses to meet and settle this, there will be dire consequences." With that said, Falconstar released the apprentice and let him race after his Clanmates.

Suddenly feeling very tired, Mythsong sat down heavily on the bloodstained ground. She could feel scratches stinging on her belly and flanks, and she seemed to ache everywhere. At the same time, adrenaline still pounded through her veins. _My first battle as a warrior!_ She thought excitedly.

While the ThunderClan cats regrouped themselves, Wiseowl and Ghostfire padded over to her. "Are you alright?" Ghostfire asked gruffly, sniffing a bad scratch on her shoulder. His voice sounded tough, but concern dulled his pale blue eyes. Mythsong felt a surge of warmth for her brother.

"I'm fine." She assured the two worried toms. "Those WindClan cats won't be back anytime soon!"

"I'll say!" Wiseowl purred. His deep emerald eyes glimmered with respect. "You really saved my tail back there. That second warrior would have flayed me if you hadn't gotten to her first. You were brilliant." Mythsong felt her fur grow hot and bent to lick her chest to hide her embarrassment. The older warrior's praise meant a lot to her.

Ghostfire lashed his tail angrily, looking out over the border into WindClan territory. "What's Falconstar thinking, inviting Oakstar to the Moonpool now?" He snarled, his long claws scoring deep gashes into the soft earth. "If I were leader, I'd go teach those WindClan cats a lesson."

"I think that's what Falconstar will do if Oakstar refuses to solve things peacefully." Wiseowl pointed out reasonably. "However, it's good of Falconstar to try to work things out. We don't need a full-out war." Ghostfire rolled his eyes and turned away from his sister and the older brown tom.

Mythsong touched her tail to Wiseowl's shoulder. "Don't let him get to you." She purred. "Ghostfire's always got ants in his pelt." She tried not to let it show how much her brother's aggressive comment had bothered her. If he really wanted to be a Clan leader, there would be nothing to stop him. Slowly, Mythsong was discovering a dark side to Ghostfire, one she wished had never been brought to life.

---

Crash! Bang! Pow! This chapter was an action-y one. I do enjoy writing out battle scenes, especially with a cat as level-headed as Mythsong. Her greatest strength is as a tactician.

Anyway, it's good that she's got an equally chill friend at her side. She'll need to keep her friends close in the upcoming chapters…

Please review.


	6. Chapter Four

Chapter Four

The patrol padded back into camp, the fresher cats supporting the ones with more injuries. Ghostfire slunk along at the back of the group, his mind whirling. What was that idiot Falconstar thinking? What was to stop Oakstar from showing up at the Moonpool with a patrol of his best warriors? Falconstar would be ripped to shreds with no one there to help him. _If I was leader,_ Ghostfire thought hotly, _I'd go over and raid their camp right now. That would teach them a lesson._ A wicked grin spread over his face.

Falconstar was already on top of Highledge, addressing the cats who had fought, "Everyone who fought in the recent battle, I want you to see Featherglow _now._ No exceptions." He jumped down from the ledge and met Featherglow as she hurried out of her den, a bundle of herbs clenched in her jaws. They exchanged a few words, then Falconstar disappeared into her den.

"Ghostfire." Ghostfire jumped at his name and looked around at Blackfire. "Once Featherglow's checked you out, take a patrol over to WindClan. Make sure they're not causing any more trouble over there…And you'd best patrol the ShadowClan border as well." She flicked her tail to the medicine cat, then padded away to speak with Grassfur.

Feeling smug, Ghostfire went to wait in the group of cats around the medicine cat. A patrol would be a great time to plot and even recruit another cat to his cause. Scanning over the assembled cats, he decided Snakebite would be a good cat to bring. He hadn't fought in the battle, so he didn't need checking out. Scarstripe was injured so he couldn't come…Who else could he bring?

Ghostfire's eyes rested on Chaosblast. The huge brown tabby was relatively uninjured, as Featherglow was telling him now. Though Ghostfire had never really spoken to the older warrior, he knew Chaosblast was an ambitious and battle-hungry cat. A perfect addition to GhostClan's growing ranks.

"Featherglow, Blackfire wants me to go out on a patrol." Ghostfire mewed politely, approaching the medicine cat as she finished with Chaosblast. "Am I alright to go?"

The calico medicine cat sniffed him over skeptically, lingering on a scratch on his side for a moment. "Let me put some cobweb on that cut there first, then you should be good to go." Featherglow replied curtly. She quickly patched him up, and with a flick of her tail mewed, "There. Be careful out there."

Ghostfire nodded gratefully and called to Snakebite and Chaosblast. "Blackfire wants us to patrol the WindClan border, and then get to ShadowClan. Let's go." He raced out of camp, the two toms pounding along after him. Once out in the forest, Ghostfire felt himself relax. Despite his dream to start a new Clan, he really felt at home under the cool canopy of trees. For now, ThunderClan was where he belonged.

The group slowed as they reached the WindClan border, and Chaosblast started to sniff around the edge of the river. Ghostfire surveyed the scene of the battle, his blue eyes raking over every last detail. Blood splatters and tufts of fur covered the trampled-down grass, but there didn't seem to be anything suspicious. Looked like those mangy WindClan cats had gotten the message—for now, at least.

"Ghostfire, why'd you bring him along?" Snakebite hissed, sidling up beside the silver tom. "Chaosblast isn't one of us. We won't be able to discuss anything with him here."

Ghostfire smiled wearily. "Snakebite, you can't honestly think that you and Scarstripe are the only cats I'll be taking with me from ThunderClan." He chuckled, flicking the dark tabby with his tail. "Chaosblast would be a valuable warrior. And if he comes, his mate Fargaze might as well."

Snakebite looked uncertain a moment longer, then grinned wickedly. "And maybe their kits Wingedpaw and Turtlepaw as well!" he cackled, lashing his tail excitedly.

"What are you two whispering about?" Chaosblast growled, stalking through the bushes towards them. His dark yellow eyes were dull with mistrust. "If you've got something to say to me, spit it out."

Laughing out loud, Ghostfire motioned for Snakebite to keep quite with his tail. "Don't worry Chaosblast, it's nothing bad." he assured the older warrior. "Quite the contrary. How would you feel about leaving ThunderClan to join a new, stronger Clan?"

Chaosblast looked surprised for a moment, then he narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "What do you mean, a new Clan? There are only four Clans in the forest, and I wouldn't join any of them."

"Oh no, of course you wouldn't." Ghostfire purred with a nonchalant flick of his paw. "But as I said, this is a new Clan. Soon myself and many other cats will be splitting away from the other four to form GhostClan."

"What's in it for me?" Chaosblast still looked uncertain, but a little more thoughtful. Ghostfire could tell he was entertaining the idea.

Snakebite snorted. "You'd be part of the strongest Clan in the forest, that's what!"

Ghostfire shot him a warning look. "Indeed. It would be a safe place for you…And your mate."

A moment of silence passed between the three as Chaosblast pondered it. His brow was scrunched up in concentration. Finally the huge tom sighed, "I'll talk to Fargaze about it. I'm not making any promises now!"

"Of course." Ghostfire inclined his head respectfully. All was going according to plan. Soon he'd have Chaosblast and Fargaze in his grasp, and their two kits to boot. Flowerspot was no doubt spreading the word in RiverClan, and Flutterwing would bring along his mate and their kits from WindClan. All that was left now was to secure his hold in ShadowClan…

"Shouldn't we hurry to the ShadowClan border?" Chaosblast snapped, looking uncharacteristically jittery.

Ghostfire jolted out of his reprieve and nodded to the older warrior. "Right you are. Let's go." He led the way at a fast pace along the edge of the lake, keeping a lookout for anything out of the ordinary. When they reached the border he slowed to a brisk walk, leading the way through the trees.

"I smell ShadowClan!" Snakebite snarled suddenly, bristling as he faced the border. Sure enough, out of the bushes came Dawnflash, a shrew hanging limply from her jaws. She was followed by Emberlight and Icepaw, who was carrying a dead frog.

"Don't worry; we're on our side of the border." Emberlight mewed stiffly, glaring at Snakebite. "Surely you ThunderClan cats aren't all this paranoid."

Chaosblast shouldered his way to the front of the group, establishing himself as the leader of the patrol. Ghostfire didn't mind; he was the oldest warrior there, after all. "No, we're not. "As long as ShadowClan keeps to their own prey, ThunderClan couldn't care less." He snapped back, eyeing the frog with distaste.

"Like we would want any of your furry squirrels." Emberlight sniffed. She turned and disappeared back into her own territory. Icepaw gave the ThunderClan cats a nervous glance, then followed after his mentor.

"Dawnflash, wait." Ghostfire hissed just as the cream she-cat was starting to turn away. "Meet me here after sundown. I'll be waiting." Dawnflash nodded, her eyes filled with admiration. _She's really quite stricken with me._ Ghostfire thought smugly.

---

The moon was still almost full, despite the Gathering having been a few days ago. It cast a soft light over the forest, dyeing everything in silvers and grays. The lake reflected all of Silverpelt, the tiny pinpoints of light shimmering on the glassy surface. Hardly a mouse stirred in the forest. Not even a leaf twitched on the trees.

By the ShadowClan border sat Ghostfire, a motionless silver stone in the forest. His pale blue eyes stared blankly into the darkness, searching out the shape of another cat. Though he hadn't been waiting for long, he was already starting to get impatient. No sign of this showed outside of his thoughts, though. On the outside he was the perfect image of patience.

Finally movement caught his eye and Dawnflash slipped out of the bushes. She let out a soft mew of greeting and rushed up to meet him, pressing her muzzle against his affectionately. "Sorry I'm late; I got held up by Swiftclaw and Slashwind." Her deep green eyes betrayed her worry. "They're starting to get suspicious."

"You talked to them about GhostClan, didn't you?" Ghostfire murmured, returning her nuzzle with a lick between the ears. "Surely they wouldn't want you to join by yourself."

Dawnflash fidgeted uncomfortably. "Yeah, I talked to them about it…" she sighed. "But Swiftclaw says he doesn't trust you, and Slashwind goes along with whatever he says. They're both really loyal to ShadowClan."

Loyalty…Well, that was an important thing to have. They'd just have to learn to be loyal to GhostClan. "Perhaps I should speak to them myself." Ghostfire muttered, mostly to himself. "How about you bring them with you tomorrow? We can meet here, in this same spot."

"Alright." Dawnflash looked a little disappointed, but she nodded obediently. No doubt she was reluctant to give up her alone time with Ghostfire, but she couldn't say no to him. Pressing against him, she mewed, "I'll see you tomorrow, then…I can't wait until we split off. Then we'll have all the time in the world."

"Yes…" Ghostfire agreed, twining his tail with hers. "All the time in the world."

---

Does Ghostfire actually love her? Eh, maybe. She's mostly just a pawn to him. :P

Stay tuned for the next exciting installment!


	7. Chapter Five

Chapter Five

A warrior's life is never dull, but the next half-moon seemed to pass in the blink of an eye. WindClan kept to their own territory, apparently satisfied by whatever Falconstar had told them at the Moonpool. Finally cats were able to hunt by the border without fear of being attacked. Peace returned to ThunderClan, and life went on as it always had.

For Mythsong, the life of a warrior seemed better than she had ever dreamed. Most of her days were spent with Magicnight, Wiseowl, and his apprentice Crouchpaw. Everyday the four of them set out on patrols, and every evening Wiseowl invited Mythsong to eat with the deputy and senior warriors. Being second only to Grassfur in experience, Wiseowl had a lot of influence over the Clan. Being the daughter of the Clan leader, Mythsong had tried her whole life to avoid special treatment. This was completely different, though. For the first time she had friends besides her brothers, and all the time in the world to spend with them.

Ghostfire was becoming more and more distant. When she asked what he was up to, he would only tell her it was in GhostClan's best interests. Most nights he would slink into the den far past moonhigh, reeking of ShadowClan. Mythsong began to suspect he was seeing a she-cat in ShadowClan. One night she stayed up to confront him about it, but when he came in the scent of WindClan clung to his pelt. Mythsong was utterly confused; what in the world was he doing? Sometimes Snakebite, Scarstripe, or Chaosblast would sneak off with him as well.

Finally Ghostfire agreed to come hunting with Mythsong, Wiseowl and Magicnight. The four warriors made their way confidently out into the territory, laughing together and having a good ol' time. Soon they split up to hunt, falling into silence and stalking their respective prey.

A loud crash was heard from the direction Ghostfire had went in, followed by the warning cry of a crow. Mythsong snarled in frustration as the mouse she was stalking darted away from her outstretched claws.

"Ghostfire!" Magicnight's scolding yowl echoed around the trees, magnifying her voice to twice its normal strength. Her green eyes flared with anger as she stared down at her former apprentice, tangled in thicket of brambles. "What kind of pounce was _that?_ You're clumsier than a three-legged badger today!"

After much grunting and pulling on both Ghostfire and Wiseowl's part, the senior warrior managed to disentangle the silver warrior from the brush. Jutting out his chin indignantly, Ghostfire scoffed, "It's not my fault you didn't teach me well enough."

"That's not true, Ghostfire. You're a better hunter than me." Mythsong pushed her way between Magicnight and her brother, afraid that the tortoiseshell she-cat would lunge at him at any moment. There was no doubt in Mythsong's mind that Ghostfire's recent forays into enemy territory were the cause of his clumsiness. He was just too proud to admit he was tired.

With a furious hiss, Ghostfire turned and stalked off into the forest, whipping Magicnight across the face with his tail as he did. Magicnight snarled and unsheathed her claws, but Wiseowl held her back with a soothing whisper before she could pounce. Disgruntled, Magicnight and Wiseowl both decided to head back to camp. All that noise would have scared away all the prey anyway.

Mythsong wasn't ready to turn back just yet. Calling to the others that she would catch up later, the golden she-cat dashed off after her brother. Why had he stormed off towards ShadowClan, anyway? Something definitely wasn't right, and Mythsong was about to find out what. Putting her tracking skills to good use, she picked up her brother's trail easily. A paw print here, a bent leaf there; the trail wasn't all that hard to follow.

Reaching the ShadowClan border, Mythsong stopped in her tracks. She could see the trail continuing along the lakeshore into ShadowClan's territory, but couldn't bring herself to cross the border. What would Falconstar say if he knew she broke the warrior code? Knowing her luck, it would only be a matter of time before someone caught her. StarClan never seemed to smile on her when she really needed to get away with something.

But then again, Ghostfire seemed to be sticking close to the lake. As long as she stayed within two tail-lengths of the water, it wouldn't be breaking the warrior code, right? Mythsong paced restlessly back and forth along the border. Somehow she knew a patrol of ShadowClan warriors wouldn't see it that way. But how else was she supposed to find out what Ghostfire was up to?

Taking a deep breath to steady herself, Mythsong plunged into the undergrowth on ShadowClan's side of the border. She flitted from bush to bush, staying as close to the water as she could. Every moment spent on enemy territory made the anxious knot in her belly grow, but she forced herself to ignore the instinct to run back to camp. She had to put a stop to Ghostfire's antics, before it hurt everyone.

Her brother's scent grew stronger and she slowed to a halt, peering out between the leaves of a thick patch of reeds. Ghostfire was sitting on a rock, casually grooming his silver fur. He seemed perfectly at ease in the strange forest, as if it was his second home. Mythsong was about to go challenge him when a strong ShadowClan reached her nose. A creamy she-cat slipped out of the trees and ran to Ghostfire with a delighted cry.

"Ghostfire, I knew you'd be here!" Dawnflash pressed her nose into his fur, purring loud enough for Mythsong to hear. Ghostfire bent his head to lick her head, but his eyes were focused on the thick pine trees.

"Did you bring your brothers like I asked?"

"What's _he _doing here?" Two more cats appeared out of the forest, both glaring daggers at Ghostfire. The one who had spoken Mythsong recognized as Slashwind, Dawnflash's sister. "When will ThunderClan learn to stay in their own territory? You know, Fablestar's getting pretty fed up with smelling you around so much."

"I assure you I am not stealing any of ShadowClan's precious prey." The chilling tone of Ghostfire's voice made the hair along Mythsong's spine stand on end. This was the side of him she wasn't familiar with; a coolly manipulative cat, who could make anyone do anything with the right words. "As I'm sure Dawnflash has told you, I am recruiting cats to join GhostClan."

Swiftclaw laughed derisively. "You really think you can start a new Clan? Well we're not interested. Come on Dawnflash, let's go." He turned and started back towards the ShadowClan camp.

"Ghostfire?" Another cat padded into the clearing, an apprentice following after her. Flowerspot, a RiverClan cat, and her apprentice Lionpaw surveyed the scene calmly. Lionpaw looked around nervously at all the warriors, but Flowerspot only raised an eyebrow at the hostile ShadowClan cats.

Ghostfire stood and met the RiverClan cats, touching his nose to theirs. "Flowerspot, I'm glad you can make it. How is recruiting in RiverClan?"

A light smirk curled around Flowerspot's muzzle. "Lionpaw convinced one of his friends to join. And do you know the warrior Hurricaneforce? I talked him into joining as well." she reported, curling her tail over her small paws neatly. Lionpaw stared at the ground, shuffling his paws nervously.

Swiftclaw looked surprised at this news, Slashwind downright astonished. "There are _more_ cats who are part of this crazy plan?" The black she-cat looked from one cat to another. "Just how large is this Clan?"

A wicked smile wound across Ghostfire's face. "From ThunderClan, myself, Snakebite, Scarstripe, Chaosblast, Fargaze, Turtlepaw, and Wingedpaw. Of WindClan Flutterwing, Jinglewind, and their kits. Of RiverClan Flowerspot, Hurricaneforce, Lionpaw, and Lionpaw's friend." Now he set his gaze hungrily on Dawnflash, who returned an uncertain smile. "And from ShadowClan, my lovely Dawnflash…And her siblings, I would hope."

The two ShadowClan cats looked at each other, really considering the choice for the first time. Dawnflash gave them both a pleading look, and finally they gave in. "Alright, we'll join GhostClan." Swiftclaw conceded. "But who will be the deputy?"

All eyes were on Ghostfire. Obviously it was something they hadn't thought of until Swiftclaw mentioned it. Each of them suddenly wanted to seize the job for themselves. But Ghostfire only smile placidly.

"Why, my sister Mythsong, of course."

The ground suddenly lurched beneath Mythsong's feet, or seemed to at least. She stumbled to the side unsteadily. Why that statement had affected her this way she couldn't understand, but something about the tone of Ghostfire's voice set her teeth on edge. As if he had already decided for her.

"What exactly does GhostClan plan to do?" Flowerspot's casual question roused Mythsong and brought her back to the real world. "Will we just be _your_ Clan, or will we have a goal in mind?"

"Why, I'm glad you asked that." Ghostfire said in a voice that sounded as if he really, truly would love to answer everyone's questions. Mythsong flinched. "GhostClan will be the most powerful Clan in the forest. We will wipe out all who oppose us…" He looked seriously at all the cats in the clearing. "Soon enough, there will be four Clans in the forest again, and one of them will be GhostClan."

Mythsong decided she had heard enough. Blindly she found her way back to ThunderClan territory, collapsing in the shallows of the lake once she passed the border. The water lapped gently against her fur, mingling with the cold sweat pouring off her. Her mind was reeling, and she felt as if she was going to be sick. She had to tell someone.

But who could she tell? Why would they even believe her? Ghostfire was a better warrior than her, after all. He was stronger and more powerful, and certainly much more intelligent. All Mythsong could ever do was run and catch mice. Though cats often told her she had a marvelous brain for battle techniques and was unbeatable in the thick of things, Mythsong never believed them.

Now that she found out her brother was betraying the Clan, all her insecurities came rushing back. What _else_ didn't she know about the cats around her? For all she knew, all the cats in ThunderClan could really be squirrels. She was just too dumb to notice. Hot tears ran down her cheeks, though Mythsong hadn't noticed she was crying. Yet another obvious thing she hadn't seen.

_I don't even know myself._ Mythsong thought bitterly. _People always look at me like I'm special, just because I'm the leader's daughter. But Racepaw was always the special one. He could make anyone laugh…_ A fleeting smile lingered on Mythsong's lips for a moment, as she remembered Racepaw's laughing face. _He could even make Ghostfire crack a smile. Why couldn't I have been the one to die?_

The sun began to set and somewhere in Mythsong's mind it registered that she had been out all day. Wiseowl and Magicnight would be worried sick about her. Or would they? Who knew; not Mythsong. A mad giggle bubbled in her throat as the golden warrior dragged herself to her feet. _I don't know anyone anymore._ She thought pleasantly, taking a few stumbling steps forward.

_What is wrong with me? Is this how you want the Clan to see you?_ Mythsong shook her head violently, an angry snarl bursting through her clenched teeth. _You have to be strong for them. Look confident for them. Dad needs you now more than ever._

Once again Mythsong buried her anxieties below a heap of feigned confidence. This was the collected, dignified Mythsong everyone knew. The cat who could think her way out of any situation, outwit any enemy, and find a solution for every problem. The cat that everyone brought their baggage to, adding their weight to the responsibilities already piled neatly on her shoulders. As the oceans of insecurities expand, Mythsong scaled even higher heights, shoveling on as much confidence and happiness as her body could handle. To the rest of the Clan, she seemed a perfect example of a secure, well-rounded warrior.

Yet it's only a matter of time until she drowns.

---

I love writing mental breakdowns for my characters. They're just so much fun.

Please read and review.


	8. Chapter Six

Chapter Six

Soon, very soon, the plan would be put into action. All the preparations were made, all the cats gathered. The new territory was scouted out, and even a good spot for a camp was found. At the upcoming Gathering, Ghostfire would reveal GhostClan to the world, establishing a fifth Clan in the forest.

The Gathering couldn't come nearly fast enough, though. His frequent nighttime meetings with Dawnflash were leaving Ghostfire exhausted. Though he had already secured her siblings as being part of the Clan, he had to keep visiting her to keep her happy. Once they were in the same Clan, none of this would be necessary. And he was certainly beginning to wonder if it had been necessary in the first place.

After two more long, grueling weeks, it was time for the next Gathering. There was never a doubt in Ghostfire's mind that he would be chosen to go; he was after all, Falconstar's son. Though the leader would deny any favoritism, he was too proud of his children to leave Mythsong and Ghostfire behind. Even so, when Falconstar called the meeting to announce who was going, a knot of anxiety formed in Ghostfire's belly. If he wasn't picked to go, it would be another long moon of sneaking off before GhostClan could begin.

Falconstar gazed down contentedly at the assembled cats, his bright blue eyes glowing with fatherly pride. He always seemed to have that look whenever he watched his whole Clan together. Ghostfire suppressed a snort of contempt at seeing his father on Highledge once again.

"I'll be announcing the cats going to the Gathering tonight." Falconstar swept his gaze over the assembled cats, as if only making the final decision then. "Ambereye, Grassfur, Chaosblast, Magicnight, Fargaze, Ghostfire, Mythsong, Strippedfur, Ticklewhisker, Wingedpaw, and Turtlepaw. Please get a good rest before the Gathering. Can't have you all falling asleep during the announcements!" Chuckling at his own joke, Falconstar stood and dissepeared back into his den.

Ghostfire let out a small sigh. At least he and Mythsong were going. Though he hadn't truly expected every GhostClan cat to be at the Gathering, it certainly made things more complicated. As if to prove this point, he noticed Snakebite and Scarstripe making a beeline for him as the meeting broke up.

"Ghostfire, we're not going to the Gathering!" Scarstripe hissed once they were within earshot, giving voice to Ghostfire's own worries. "What are we supposed to do while you're announcing GhostClan?"

Biting back a sharp retort, Ghostfire replied calmly. "After we leave for the Gathering, you two can gather the rest of GhostClan's cats and head to GhostClan's new camp. I warned our cats from other Clans to do the same."

The two warriors still looked uncertain, but Ghostfire didn't stick around to hear any more of their complaints. He spotted Mythsong talking with Magicnight and Wiseowl, and decided to warn her of his plans for the Gathering. But too his annoyance, her friends didn't leave. Instead they all went back to the warrior's den together, laughing at some inside joke.

_How bothersome._ He sniffed in irritation, following them into the den a few tail-lengths behind. _I hope she's convinced those two to join GhostClan as well…Or she'll have to make some new friends._ Not that she would need friends, though. As the deputy of GhostClan, surely Mythsong would be too busy for the common warrior. He smiled wistfully at the thought; leading GhostClan, with his beloved sister as deputy.

With these pleasant thoughts swirling around his mind, Ghostfire settled himself into a nest and fell asleep. At the Gathering, all his dreams would pay off.

---

Ghostfire woke up on his own a few hours later, but around him the chosen cats were still sleeping. _Falconstar must not have called us yet._ He thought, looking around the den with a bored expression. His pale blue eyes rested on Mythsong in the nest next to his, and he decided now was as good a time as any to tell her about his plans. He prodded her with his paw gently, and after a moment she lifted her head and blinked blearily at him.

"Ghostfire? What's up, is it time to go yet?" Mythsong stretched her jaws in a yawn, getting up into more of a sitting position.

"No, not yet." Ghostfire shook his head, but his eyes didn't leave his sister's. "I just wanted to talk to you in private. GhostClan will be splitting off from the other Clans today. You'll be deputy, of course."

A frown of worry marred Mythsong's usually attractive features. Her eyes betrayed fear and uncertainty, something Ghostfire hadn't noticed before. Could she possibly be having doubts about GhostClan? _No, of course not._ Ghostfire pushed the thought away. _She's just worried about being a good deputy, as any cat would be._ _She's always so nervous about those types of things._ Ghostfire knew his sister better than anyone, or so he thought.

Mythsong opened her mouth to say something, but just as she did Falconstar's yowl sounded from the main camp. Giving Ghostfire a fleeting look, Mythsong bolted out of the den. Her brother followed slowly, nudging Magicnight as he went by. It was time to get moving.

The patrol set off through the territory at a painfully sluggish pace, moving slowly so that the elders Strippedfur and Ticklewhisker could keep up. Once they crossed the stream into WindClan's territory, Strippedfur insisted that they move faster, he wasn't a helpless kit after all. So this time Falconstar set a brisk pace through the open moors of WindClan.

Ghostfire felt his fur bristle at the scent of a WindClan patrol—No doubt heading for the Gathering as well. Though they had been quiet for the past moon, would WindClan try to pick a fight with ThunderClan now? He grimaced when he saw the patrol streaking over the hillside towards the ThunderClan cats.

"Falconstar, good evening." Oakstar called, drawing up to a halt beside the ThunderClan cats. "Mind if WindClan travels with you?"

Falconstar purred and nodded to the other leader. "Of course not. The more the merrier!"

To Ghostfire's utter surprise, the WindClan cats fell into step with ThunderClan, mingling and chatting with their former enemies. All animosity seemed to have vanished; what could have Falconstar said to Oakstar that day at the Moonpool? Whatever it was, it had really done the trick. Though both Clans still seemed a little defensive and nervous, all traces of their former feud were gone.

"Ghostfire?" A shaking mew from behind him made Ghostfire start and spin around. Flutterwing had managed to sneak up on him, which wasn't the easiest thing to do. _I must still be half asleep._

"Flutterwing, good to see you. I trust all is well with you and Jinglewind?" He surveyed the jumpy tom carefully, hoping he had finally convinced his mate to bring the kits to GhostClan.

Flutterwing nodded enthusiastically, but his eyes darted from side to side nervously. "Yes, yes, Jinglewind is fine. She decided to join GhostClan with the kits, too…"

"Wonderful. We'll be happy to have them, as well as you and your mate." Ghostfire nodded approvingly, turning his head to look for Mythsong. He hoped to tell her the good news, but once again she was busy. Seeing her talking with Magicnight and Blackfire made him burn with frustration. What was she doing fraternizing with the deputy of their soon-to-be rival Clan, anyway?

Together the two Clans made their way across the fallen tree and onto the island. Ghostfire flicked his tail to Flutterwing, Chaosblast and Fargaze, slipping into the trees with them. Surveying the clearing closely, he spotted Dawnflash and her siblings chatting with Flowerspot and the huge RiverClan warrior Hurricaneforce.

Flowerspot looked around at him as he approached, her pale emerald eyes flashing. "Lionpaw was unable to come, but Hurricaneforce brought his apprentice." She nodded to a small golden she-cat with folded ears. "This is Winkpaw, a friend of Lionpaw's that he convinced to join."

Winkpaw looked up, at first with the usual apprentice-shyness. Then she suddenly gave Ghostfire a sharp-toothed smile. "Hello there! Can't wait to be part of GhostClan." Certainly there was more to this she-cat than what met the eye.

"Excellent." Ghostfire hissed, sliding his claws in and out. With Turtlepaw and Wingedpaw, Fargaze's kits joining as well, the Clan would have plenty of apprentices to train in the ways of GhostClan. The kits would soon be apprentices as well. They had everything they needed to get started. Right about now Scarstripe and Snakebite should be meeting Jinglewind and her kits and taking them to the forest beyond ShadowClan and ThunderClan's territory. All they needed now was…

"Ghostfire," Slashwind suddenly spoke up and Ghostfire turned sharp blue eyes on her. "A few apprentices overheard us talking the other day, one of them Sparrowpaw…She's the medicine cat apprentice of ShadowClan. They all want to join GhostClan, and Sparrowpaw wants to be the full medicine cat."

Ghostfire's heart soared. This was perfect! He could remember when Sparrowpaw had become Dancestep's apprentice a while ago. Certainly she had enough training by now to function as medicine cat. With that covered, GhostClan could officially be called a Clan.

The leader was about to say something when he was interrupted by a chuckle from behind him. Spinning around he saw Ambereye, her odd eyes glittering with mischief. "What's this now, planning a rebellion?" the senior warrior sneered. "Or a new Clan, is it?"

"What's it to you?" Flutterwing stepped up before her, though he was considerably smaller in size.

Ambereye only laughed. "GhostClan, is this? I'll join you…And I'll bring Ivypaw too." Her mismatched eyes suggested that they knew something he didn't, and Ghostfire didn't like it. What could she possibly be hiding?

Although her motives were questionable, Ghostfire couldn't deny that she would be a valuable addition to the Clan, along with Ivypaw. He had seen that she had a lot of influence over the young apprentice. "Fine, if you're sure you'll be loyal." He narrowed his eyes at her, challenging her to back out now.

"Don't worry, I wouldn't _dream_ of betraying you." She matched his gaze evenly, not showing even a hint of fear.

Feeling uneasy, Ghostfire turned away from the GhostClan cats as the four leaders let out a yowl. The Gathering was about to begin, and Ghostfire didn't want to miss a moment of it. No doubt this would be the most exciting Gathering any of them could remember.

Crescentstar was standing at the edge of her branch, ready to speak. Once the talking had died down, she began, "Greetings, cats of all Clans. Hopefully Greenleaf has been treating everyone well. RiverClan thrives, though we are aggrieved to announce the passing of Kinktail." She lowered her head and the other cats in the clearing did the same, keeping a moment of silence for the dead elder. Ghostfire curled his lip. Who cared about the death of one whiney elder?

Finished with her report, Crescentstar stepped back, and Oakstar took her place. He puffed out his chest, looking down proudly at the many cats below him. "WindClan is also doing well! Just yesterday a patrol chased away a troublesome dog from our territory. It went back to the farm, and hopefully won't cause any more problems."

Next Fablestar stood, her branch creaking slightly with the motion. "Our prey is running well in ShadowClan, and we have not much to report." She shot Falconstar a hard stare. "Though we wonder why we have been scenting ThunderClan at the edge of the lake recently."

Falconstar gave the ShadowClan leader a bewildered look; he obviously knew nothing of Ghostfire's forays into enemy land. "I'm sorry, I don't know why that would be either." he apologized, dipping his head to Fablestar. "I'll make sure it doesn't happen again."

"Yes, see that it doesn't." Fablestar sat down again with a pointed sigh, and stared vaguely at the sky.

"Right…" Falconstar nodded, standing up to report next. "ThunderClan has nothing of importance to report, other than that we are well off. So if that's everything…" He started to close up the Gathering, looking ready to jump down from his perch.

"Wait." Ghostfire leapt to his feet. "GhostClan has yet to give its first report."

---

Shame on me, ending with a cliffhanger like that. :P Oh well! Sorry for the long wait for this update. I've been working on a different story to get through a writer's block on this one.

Please read and review.


	9. Chapter Seven

Chapter Seven

There was a shocked silence as Ghostfire stood and made his way to the tree. He seemed to move in slow motion, taking is sweet time weaving through the gaping cats. Just a silver shadow leaping onto a low branch in one fluid motion, looking down contentedly at his stunned audience. The pleasure Ghostfire got in causing this sort of trouble was obvious.

Mythsong felt the blood freeze in her veins and ever hair on her pelt stand on end. So this was really it, was it? Her brother was really splitting off of ThunderClan…And he planned to take her with him. Was this just a dream? This couldn't possibly be happening…

"I am proud to announce that as of today, a new Clan will be established in the forest." Ghostfire puffed out his chest importantly and glared down at the gathered cats. His icy blue eyes dared anyone to challenge his claim. "GhostClan will live in the woods beyond ShadowClan and ThunderClan territory."

There was one heartbeat of quiet before the clearing exploded into chaos. Soon everyone was jumping to their paws, shouting angrily at the silver tom that didn't belong in the Great Oak.

"Who do you think you are?"

"You can't just start a Clan!"

"Get down from there you silly youngster!"

Ghostfire only sat there and smirked.

Mythsong crouched low to the ground, flattening her ears against the noise. In her mind she pictured a big hole appearing under her and swallowing her up. Anything to escape the horror and turmoil running rampant at the Gathering. How could her brother, her beloved Ghostfire, have caused this much trouble? She raised her eyes to the sky, clear and without a single cloud to mar the light of the moon. _Are you watching, Racepaw? Do you see what our brother has become?_

"SILENCE!" Oakstar and Crescentstar shouted in unison. The WindClan leader looked about ready to throw himself at the next cat who talked, while Crescentstar just looked exasperated. Fablestar was watching the goings-on with an expression of mild interest, but said nothing. Falconstar was just staring at Ghostfire with his jaw hanging open.

Immediately the gathered cats fell silent, staring in fear up at the irate leaders. Oakstar bared his teeth to Ghostfire, his temper getting the better of him. "Now, what do you think you're trying to do? You can't just _decide_ to form a Clan out of thin air!" He lashed his long tail in aggravation. "Do you know how hard it is to be a leader? How much work it is to lead even a fully established Clan?"

A laugh formed on Ghostfire's lips, a chilling sound that sent a shiver down Mythsong's spine. "This is not out of 'thin air', Oakstar. Far from it." Blue eyes turned down to the assembled cats and he yowled, "GhostClan cats, stand up now!"

Around her, Mythsong saw cats shifting and moving. From ThunderClan Chaosblast, Fargaze and Turtlepaw rose to their feet. To her surprise Mythsong saw Ambereye stand as well, staring Ghostfire in the eyes with a determined look. A few cats from the other Clans stood as well, receiving reproachful glares from their Clanmates. GhostClan had grown without Mythsong noticing.

Suddenly Falconstar came to life again. A fire Mythsong had never seen burned in his deep blue eyes as he snarled, "How dare you betray ThunderClan, your birth Clan! We are your family! How can you turn your back on us and still be so calm?!" Ghostfire didn't respond; didn't even turn his head to look at his father. Falconstar's fur bristled as he arched his back. "You are a traitor to ThunderClan, and all the cats here! Why should anyone trust you as leader?"

"I have to live for the death that I caused!" Ghostfire whipped around to face Falconstar, his own fur fluffing out defensively. A wild snarl curved around his lips, showing sharp white fangs. His eyes were wide and filled with a wild determination. "I'm not just living for myself anymore! I have to live out this dream for all who died before me!"

Falconstar blinked once, twice. "What in StarClan's _name_ are you talking about?! Who are you living for? How will this avenge someone's death?"

Without a second glance Ghostfire jumped down from the tree. He flicked his tail, beckoning his cats to him. Slowly the GhostClan cats began to make their way through the crowd to him.

"Ghostfire! Ghostfire, _listen to me!_" Falconstar screeched, digging his claws into the branch of the Great Oak. His voice rose in pitch to an anguished wail as he clung for dear life to the gnarled tree limb. Mythsong winced at the desperation in his voice. "Ghostfire, my son, doesn't blood mean _anything_ to you? I'm your father for StarClan's sake!"

The silver tom stopped, letting his Clan form up around him. They formed a protective arc around their leader, shielding him from the accusing glare of the other Clans. "I have all the family I need here." He turned slowly, and his eyes picked Mythsong out of the crowd. There was a cold certainty in those eyes, as he knew something no one else did. "Come along, Mythsong. GhostClan needs its deputy."

All eyes turned to Mythsong. She stayed frozen in place, her eyes wide as the full moon that shown so clearly above her. It felt as though her pelt was burning, set ablaze by the many pairs of eyes burning into her. Inside, her mind was in complete chaos. Different arguments were all vying for her attention, trying to get her to consider every option all at once. For the first time, she was really considering leaving with Ghostfire.

So what if she would be leaving ThunderClan? In GhostClan, she would be deputy, and then leader. She allowed herself to picture that for a moment, savoring the image of her poised on top of Highledge, addressing the Clan—_Her_ Clan, not her father's. How could something that wonderful be a bad thing?

But the more logical side of her was already winning out. Sure it may seem nice to be leader of the Clan one day, but she'd rather be leader of the Clan she already knew and loved, if it ever happened. ThunderClan was where she grew up, and though it may not mean much to Ghostfire, Mythsong still loved her home. It only took one look at Wiseowl and Magicnight's shocked faces to erase the last of Mythsong's doubts.

Finally Mythsong raised her eyes to meet Ghostfire's cold blue ones. "I'm not coming with you." she said slowly, loud enough for every cat in the clearing to hear. "I am a ThunderClan cat, and you're crazy for thinking I could ever be anything different. If you don't mind, I'd rather stay with my family."

A wild look came over Ghostfire's eyes. For a moment it looked as though he was about to leap forward and attack her. Mythsong willed herself not to look away or flinch, willed herself to hold his gaze. His eyes burned into hers, filled with nothing but absolute hatred. Usually his real emotions were so controlled, so carefully hidden. Yet here anyone could see he hated her more than anything in the world.

Suddenly he snapped back to his own self, his face becoming stonily blank. "Very well." Ghostfire turned away. "The next time you see me, I will be Ghoststar." He bounded out of the clearing with his Clan, leaving the other four Clans in his wake.

---

Sorry for the really long wait. I had some major writers block…Well a full creative block actually, I couldn't do much of anything. I'll try to finish this story in a timely fasion.

I'm not so happy with these short chapters lately. This one is 1,255 words…Here's hoping the next one will come out to over 2,000 words.

Please read and review.


	10. Chapter Eight

Chapter Eight

Falconstar led his Clan home, stalking along silently through WindClan territory and back to the camp. No one said a word as they walked, aside from Oakstar wishing them good luck when his Clan went to their own camp. The ThunderClan leader stared straight ahead, his eyes dull and lifeless.

Mythsong walked beside him, her pelt lightly brushing his. She watched her father's face carefully, trying to think of something to say. As she studied his features she watched a myriad of emotions play over his face. One moment he would look absolutely furious, the next he seemed on the verge of tears. In another second he looked just about ready to die, ready to give up. It was that look that scared Mythsong the most. Falconstar took his duty as a father very seriously, and she could remember how upset he was when Racepaw died.

When they reached camp, Falconstar retreated to his den without a word to anyone. Blackfire jumped onto the Highledge to address the Clan, while Featherglow and Gustflight followed the leader into his den. Mythsong slipped away as well, stepping into the cool exterior of the den just behind her mother. Falconstar was collapsed in his nest with Gustflight sitting next to him, slowly licking his fur.

"Falconstar, you know this isn't your fault." Featherglow told him gently. "Ghostfire made his own decision. No one could have stopped him."

Falconstar dug his claws into the moss of his nest. "I could have stopped him. I should have seen this! He wasn't happy in ThunderClan, and I should have seen it."

"He hasn't been the same, Dad…" Mythsong put in, coming fully into the den when no one asked her to leave. "Not since Racepaw died."

"Racepaw!" Falconstar's face twisted into a snarl of horror and fury. "I've already let one of my children down! I can't bear to be losing another son!"

"But Ghostfire is still alive!" Gustflight insisted. "And you have our three new kits, back in the nursery. They need their father."

"They need a better father than me. I've failed Racepaw, Ghostfire, and this whole Clan." The golden tom rested his head on his paws in defeat. "Dear StarClan, what have I done wrong?"

Featherglow sighed. "Let's leave him alone for a while." She and Gustflight left, and Mythsong started to follow. Before she reached the exit her father made a small whimpering sound, and she looked back uncertainly.

"I never wanted to be leader." he said suddenly, not looking up at her. "When the leader named me as deputy, no one thought I would do a good job. Everyone said I was too soft to be a leader, too soft to take command of the Clan one day. I always tried to follow my heart, like my mentor told me a long time ago." Falconstar chuckled slightly, but it was only a half-hearted sound. "I've said it many times that I think of myself as a father to the whole Clan. Every one of these cats are my children…But they said I was too soft to lead them.

"And so maybe I have been too soft. I try to keep peace so that my warriors, my children, can lead good long lives before they retire. What would Ghostfire have done differently? Lead us all in to bloody battles until there's nothing left?" Falconstar shook his head dejectedly. "What would you have done differently in my place?"

Mythsong felt her face grow hot. "I wouldn't change anything, Father. You've done a great job leading this Clan."

"Then why do I lose all my children? Why do they all leave me like this?"

"You haven't lost everyone!" Why couldn't he understand this? Seeing her father in such a depressing state was scaring Mythsong to the core. Falconstar had always been an unwavering force in her life, a central pillar holding the Clan up. It was terrifying to see him falter like this. "You still have the kits, and Gustflight who love you. And you still have me."

Falconstar met Mythsong's eyes for the first time since they'd entered the den. She held his gaze the way she held Ghostfire's, determined and fierce. Finally he let out a chuckle. "A father's not supposed to say this, but you were always my favorite of your siblings. I knew you'd come out to be something to be proud of."

"Thank you." Mythsong highly doubted this. When Racepaw was alive, he had been everyone's favorite. There was no way Falconstar had always favored her over him. After all, who would love her over talented, quick-witted little Racepaw?

With a soft grunt Falconstar heaved himself into a sitting position, starting to look a bit like his old self again. "What the other cats said about me being too weak to lead always stuck with me. It's always haunted me." Blue eyes turned towards the ceiling, as if the answers could be derived from the shadowy roof of the cave. "But when you and your brothers were born, I was the happiest cat in the world. I knew that all my life, all I'd wanted was to be a father.

"You three gave me the strength I needed to become the leader I am today. Without Gustflight's support when I was deputy I would have resigned and without you three I would have retired before even losing my first life. My children mean everything to me."

"You don't give yourself any credit." Mythsong assured him, once again playing the role of therapist for another cat. "You're the leader of our whole Clan. I can't even imagine what that's like."

Falconstar's whisker twitched. "I suppose. The pride I feel when I look down from the Highledge and name a new apprentice or warrior is worth it. The pride I felt giving you and Ghostfire your warrior names made everything worth it…But I guess that wasn't enough for Ghostfire."

_Nothing's good enough for Ghostfire._ Mythsong though spitefully. He hadn't been content with anything since Racepaw's death; that much was obvious now. Just being a normal warrior wasn't good enough. Not even being leader was enough. To live up to Racepaw's legacy Ghostfire thought he had to start an entirely new Clan.

"Ghostfire blames himself for Racepaw's death." Mythsong glowered at her paws. "He told me as much himself."

Falconstar blinked. "Why would he blame himself? It was devastating for Racepaw to die the way he did, but it was an accident. Why would Ghostfire think otherwise?"

Mythsong didn't have an answer, and only shook her head. She couldn't begin to understand her brother's twisted mind. There was a time when she thought she knew him better than anyone, but now that time was long gone.

A moment of awkward silence passed between the two. Father and daughter both looked everywhere but at each other, afraid of what they would see behind the other's blue eyes. Both feared they were losing the other, and soon would have nothing left.

"I wish…Ghostfire had not taken some of my other children with him." Falconstar sighed after a long stretch of silence. Mythsong could only guess that 'children' referred to the other ThunderClan cats that had left with Ghostfire. "Our family has shrunk."

Mythsong moved closer, resting her muzzle on her father's head. He pressed his nose into her fur, letting out a long sigh. "Don't worry, Dad. I'll always be part of your family." she promised, her breath ruffling his soft golden fur. "I'll always be here to protect ThunderClan and my three youngest brothers. We're one big happy family, just like always."

If only she believed she could keep this promise.

---

Mm. Another short one. When does the action start? I'm getting sick of drawing out these talking scenes. XP (As if I don't already have the next chapter planned)

The next chapter will explain any doubts about Ghostfire's nine lives. Don't worry, it won't be a pleasant ceremony.

Please read and review.


	11. Chapter Nine

Chapter Nine

The light of the just-past-full moon cast a slivery light over the forest. Silverpelt was reflected perfectly in the still, glassy surface of the lake. Legends told of how the first cats coming to the lake had seen the reflection and knew this was where StarClan wanted them to live. Medicine cats even today said that on clear nights like these, the stars floating in the lake showed how StarClan could still walk among the living if they chose.

Ghostfire was not concerned with legends or kit's tales, or even with StarClan's power on earth. His main concern was to receive his nine lives and become a full leader GhostClan; the first ever leader of GhostClan. The light of the moon made the going easy for him and Sparrowpaw, the medicine cat apprentice who he brought along to be recognized as a full medicine cat. She looked timid and uncertain, but there was no doubt in Ghostfire's mind about how this night would go. There was no reason for StarClan to reject either of them.

Besides, if they didn't approve, wouldn't they have shown it at the Gathering? Ghostfire smirked at the thought. As if StarClan's wrath would have stopped him.

The cats slipped side by side through the very edge of ThunderClan territory, scouting out potential boundary markings as they went. Once Ghostfire was established as leader they would have to set down their borders and start sending patrols. If they were ever to be respected, they would have to start acting as a Clan right away. Ghostfire's brain was already buzzing with plans and strategies. Yes, soon all the Clans would respect GhostClan as the greatest Clan in the forest.

He was so lost in his thoughts that he hadn't noticed when they arrived at the Moonpool. Sparrowpaw had led the way through a thicket and into the open cave above the pool. A spiraling path led down the side of the cave and to the sparkling waters. The sound of running water echoed around the cave. Looking around in mild wonder, Ghostfire trotted down the dimpled path behind Sparrowpaw, his paws falling into step with the pawsteps of his ancestors.

"Just lie down by the pool and drink the water." Sparrowpaw instructed, settling down herself next to the water. "StarClan will send you a dream."

Ghostfire nodded and obediently dipped his head to lap up a few drops from the pool. Sure enough he began to feel sleepy, and set down his head on his paws, ready for a dream.

When he opened his eyes he was standing in the clearing on the island, surrounded by reams of cats. Most of them he didn't recognize, but a few of them were familiar. He recognized a warrior, Needlenose, who had been killed a few moons ago in one of the skirmishes with WindClan. Behind him was the elder Shockwave who had died of greencough when Ghostfire was still a kit.

"Are you all ThunderClan's ancestors?" Ghostfire demanded, looking around for those who would give him his lives.

As an answer a cat he didn't recognize pushed himself to the front of the group. Even in the dim moonlight Ghostfire could make out his bright ginger coat, glittering with stardust. His face was twisted into a frown, and his green eyes were dull with mistrust. "Greetings…Ghostfire. My name is Firestar." the ginger tom welcomed him, though he didn't sound very welcoming.

Ghostfire's eyes widened slightly. "_The_ Firestar? The ancient kittypet leader?"

Firestar narrowed his eyes warningly. "Quite. Now then, we understand you wish to receive your nine lives to be leader of 'GhostClan." He glanced around the clearing, as if consulting with the other StarClan cats. "While we're not happy about you splitting away from the four Clans, we've never had any rule against starting a new Clan before.

"So what's the problem then?" Ghostfire was getting impatient. "Just give me my lives and let's be done with it."

The legendary leader's eyes flashed. Anyone could tell he wasn't happy about the current turn of events. "Let me warn you, Ghostfire. Being leader is a huge responsibility for a cat as young as you to take on. Especially leading a young Clan."

"Thanks, but I know what I'm doing." the silver tom snapped. "Don't lecture me."

Without another word Firestar stepped back, merging into the mob of ThunderClan ancestors. There was a shift among the starry ranks, and a long-legged gray tom stepped forward. His blue eyes were identical to Ghostfire's own; once filled with laughter, but now icy and dull.

"Racepaw!"

Racepaw regarded his brother coolly, not answering right away. Ghostfire wanted to say something, but he couldn't find the right words. Didn't Racepaw know he was doing this for him? That all of this was to make up for Racepaw's death? But the apprentice's face was guarded, unreadable.

"I'll be giving you your nine lives, one at a time, as per StarClan tradition." Racepaw touched his nose to Ghostfire's. "With this first life I give you the courage to defend GhostClan."

Ghostfire was about to object that he had plenty of courage already, thank you very much, when the life seared through him like lightening. Caught off guard, the silver tabby let out a screech and stumbled away from Racepaw. But just as the pain ebbed away, Racepaw was coming forward again.

"With this life I give you justice, to make fair decisions for your new Clan."

Another spasm of pain, this one worse than the last. Ghostfire gritted his teeth to stop from crying out again. When he looked up Racepaw had a slight smirk on his face, a twisted scowl of what his cheerful face usually looked like. Was he…_Enjoying_ this?

"With this next life I give you loyalty." He pushed his nose against Ghostfire's again. "Use it to guide your Clan in times of trouble."

_Though you wouldn't know what loyalty really is, would you?_

What?

Another stab of pain rushed though him, and he knew this wasn't the pain of dying for your Clan. This was the pain of a heartbroken father, a distraught mother, an outraged sister. His legs shook, unwilling to hold him for much longer. But he wasn't done yet.

Racepaw came again, saying, "I give you tireless energy. Use it well to carry out the duties of a leader."

He felt himself running through the forest in a panic, running as fast as his long legs could carry him. The wind whipped through his fur, an exhilarating feeling. But it was cut short by a scream and a flash of pain. Ghostfire flinched. Those must have been the last moment of Racepaw's life.

When he looked up, his brother was studying him carefully. He looked as though he wanted to say something, but the silence just stretched further and further. Behind Racepaw the ranks of StarClan watched with intensely glittering eyes.

"Racepaw, I…"

"With this life I give you protection." Racepaw cut him off. "Use it to watch over your Clan like a parent."

The pain he felt again belonged to another cat; it was his parent's pain. What his father felt when Racepaw died, and again when Ghostfire left. What his mother felt at the same moments. From his mother's heart came the ferocious desire to keep her three new kits alive and happy.

_How much more of this can I take?_ Ghostfire wailed inwardly. Already he felt as though he couldn't possibly hold any more lives. He felt full and heavy, but again Racepaw was addressing him. Ghostfire endured through the anguish of mentoring and the hungry fire of compassion. He didn't look at Racepaw anymore; he didn't try to understand what the lives meant. His body was rigid and steady as he braced himself for each of the lives.

The worst so far was when Racepaw gave him the life of love. He felt Dawnflash's love for him, a yearning, aching feeling in his chest. It was followed by the shattered hearts of his family in ThunderClan, so strong he was afraid his heart would burst from his chest.

Finally, the last life. "With this last life, I give you nobility, certainty and faith." Racepaw rested his muzzle on his head, like a leader welcoming a new warrior. "Use it well to leader your Clan in the ways of StarClan, and the warrior code."

When finally the last stab of agony had ebbed away, Racepaw stepped back. Ghostfire was panting, his head bent over and eyes drooping. Every bit of him ached, from his tail to the tip of his ears. All the emotions, all the experiences…They were something he had never felt before. Now that he knew how they felt, he vowed never to feel that pain, anger, love, anguish, hope, strife, and betrayal ever again.

"I hail you by your new name," Racepaw raised his voice, letting it echo around the clearing. "Ghoststar. StarClan grants you the power, with your nine lives, to lead GhostClan. You leave your old life behind here. You are guardian to the old and sick, the young and defenseless. We trust you to lead your Clan in the ways of the warrior code." Here he narrowed his eyes mistrustfully.

"Ghoststar." the starry warriors mumbled his new name, standing and looking ready to leave. "Ghoststar, Ghoststar."

A deafening crash sounded as a bolt of lightening struck the Great Tree behind Ghoststar. He was knocked forward with a yowl and turned to watch the tree burst into flames. The StarClan cats had vanished, leaving him alone with Racepaw in the burning clearing.

"What's going on?!" the silver tom demanded, rounding on his brother. "You're StarClan; put out the fire!"

Racepaw stared past him, his gaze lost in the dancing flames behind Ghoststar. "The new shall rip the old asunder and threaten all we know." he hissed, his voice echoing eerily. "Before peace is restored ghost must fade to myth, or the forest will burn."

---

A new prophecy! Gasp! This chapter's a bit longer. Enjoy.

Please read and review.


	12. Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten

Every breath was a labor, the smoke searing her throat as she sucked it in. The air was hot and thick, buffeting her body like strong winds as she ran. Around her the flames surged, licked hungrily at the passing cat. Each burning tongue singed her fur, filling her nose with the smells of smoke and burning fur. But she had to keep running. She didn't have a choice.

_Where is he?_ Mythsong's subconscious was screaming, driving the dream-cat forward. Her paws moved with some sense of purpose, though she had no idea where she was going. Somewhere, in her waking mind, now pushed to the back by her dream, Mythsong answered herself, _Who am I looking for?_

Her paws skidded over dead leaves and she slid into the ThunderClan camp. The clearing was empty and silent, eerily so. Though beyond the barrier the fire raged, under the shadow of the steep cliff the camp was perfect. One cat stood at the center of the clearing, facing away from her. His gray pelt looked vaguely familiar, and the dream-Mythsong knew who he was. The conscious Mythsong couldn't put her paw on it.

Mythsong was suddenly very aware that she was dreaming, though she couldn't stop it. She had the disorienting sensation that she was seeing the scene from two perspectives at once: from her own eyes standing firmly on the ground and from a point just above her.

"We have to go!" Mythsong screamed, taking a step towards the smaller cat. He swung around to face her, his blue eyes meeting her identical ones. A chill shot through Mythsong's body as though someone had dripped ice water down her back.

It was Racepaw.

Stars pooled at his feet, dancing around his paws like falling snow as he stepped slowly towards her. Pinpoints of lights shone in his pelt, shimmering as he moved. His face looked older than she remembered and his eyes shone with infinite wisdom, but the same familiar smile split his face.

"I've missed you, Mythsong." her brother purred, stopping a tail-length in front of her. Then his face fell and his eyes took on a faraway look. "The new shall rip the old asunder and threaten all we know. Before peace is restored ghost must fade to myth, or the forest will burn."

Just then the flames poured in, engulfing the camp and swirling in front of Mythsong's vision. She let out a terrified scream before they closed over her head, smothering her in hot blackness.

Mythsong's eyes flew open, but the feeling of being smothered persisted. Panicking, she gave a muffled screech and thrashed wildly. Whatever it was suffocating her, it shifted slightly and gave a groan. Mythsong's fear evaporated, leaving irritation in its place. She wriggled her muzzle free of the stuffy fur and yowled, "Wiseowl, you big furball, get off me!"

"Hu-wha?" Was the answer she got from the senior warrior. He twisted his head around to look at her, blinking blearily, but made no move to get up. Growling ill-temperedly Mythsong gave a great heave and threw him off, sending him tumbling over on top of Grassfur.

The other warrior gave an angry grunt and pushed Wiseowl back towards Mythsong. "What's going on, why are you throwing runts at me?" The comment, out of context, would have been harsh, but Grassfur's eyes glittered with amusement. He may have been the most senior warrior without Ambereye, but he still had a sense of humor about him.

"Who are you calling runt, you old fleabag?" Wiseowl growled playfully, righting himself and swatting a paw at Grassfur. "I'm a warrior; I've been a warrior for a long time!"

"Not as long as me, young'un." the pale ginger tom ducked away from his paw and tossed a bit of moss at Wiseowl. He ducked and it hit Mythsong squarely on the nose.

Feeling she had to get involved now, Mythsong pounced onto Wiseowl's back and buried her teeth lightly in his scruff. He screeched and rolled over into Ambereye's empty nest. Grassfur sat back and laughed, watching the wrestling warriors contentedly.

A black and ginger head stuck itself into the den, green eyes taking in the scene with some distain. "If you all are done acting like kits," Magicnight mewed, her voice laced with sarcasm. "Falconstar just called a meeting." The slightest trace of a grin touched her lips as she withdrew her head.

Mythsong and Wiseowl untangled their limbs and shook the fur from their pelts, blushing under the laughing eyes of Grassfur. The three padded out into the clearing after Magicnight and found their spaces around Highledge, where Falconstar was waiting patiently.

"I have called this meeting," Falconstar began once they were all assembled, "To remind you that ThunderClan is still as strong as ever. True, many of us lost family and friends to this…GhostClan. But we who have remained are stronger for it. We must not have doubts, and we must not let their choice get in the way of our judgement.

"Just like any other Clan, GhostClan are our rivals. They are young, but they are strong and determined. If we are to stand against them we must remain just as strong, and show that they haven't weakened our spirit. We are still ThunderClan, and we have always persevered.

"That being said, I want to make one thing very clear." Falcongaze's expression grew dark and a shiver passed through the assembled cats. "Everyone here must be true to ThunderClan. Any more of these uprisings will not be looked upon favorably. So while I say we are still a united Clan, we must each be committed to this fact."

Mythsong suddenly felt her pelt grow hot as all eyes turned to her. It felt a lot like the Gathering, that uncomfortable feeling of being scrutinized and judged. Any cat could tell the others didn't trust her. Dewdrop and Sparkelpool especially looked hostile, and Flashinglight's claws slid in and out ominously.

Someone nudged her gently and Mythsong looked around at Wiseowl, who smiled encouragingly before shooting a glare at the other warriors. Next to him Grassfur was looking at their leader serenely, apparently unperturbed by the tension crackling through the clearing. Magicnight sat on her other side, her calico pelt brushing Mythsong's as she shot a scowl towards Sparklepool.

Mythsong's heart lifted a little. At least there were some cats on her side, even if Grassfur just looked a little out-of-it.

Falconstar's face broke into his usual, familiar smile. "Well now, I'll leave patrols in your capable paws, Blackfire." He gave the deputy a nod and turned into his den. At the nursery, Gustflight ordered her kits inside, then bounded up the slope after him.

Blackfire was already all business. "Wiseowl, you take Crouchpaw, Magicnight and Wingedpaw to the WindClan border. Catch some prey on the way." she was saying when Mythsong joined the little group around her. Her brow was furrowed uneasily. Very suddenly, ThunderClan was short on warriors. If average-size patrols went out, there would be no one left to defend the camp.

Sighing, Blackfire finished, "Grassfur and Mythsong, you come with me. We'll go up ShadowClan's border and patrol the new 'GhostClan' one." The black warrior flicked her tail and disappeared into the forest, Grassfur loping after her. Mythsong caught Wiseowl's eye and he shot her a quick smile, then was off with his own patrol. Mythsong scrambled after her own.

Blackfire slowed to a brisk trot when they reached ShadowClan's scent markers, leading the way along the stream. Mythsong padded along next to her mentor, feeling at peace with the world for once. Grassfur followed along on Blackfire's other side, smiling to himself. The border was quiet, and when they reached the end of the scent markers—where the land had continued unclaimed—they stopped and looked around.

"I don't smell anything." Grassfur sniffed suspiciously at a clump of bracken. "Not a hint of them. Could they be somewhere else?"

"Maybe they haven't gotten here yet." Mythsong pointed out, shrugging. Being so close to this new border was making her pelt tingle uncomfortably. "We should leave them alone."

Blackfire nodded. "Right…We wouldn't know where to set our own. As long as they don't come past the Twoleg house." She kept moving, going slower now and stopping to peer into the undergrowth every now and then. Mythsong could tell she was uncomfortably too; Ambereye had been one of Blackfire's closest friends, but she had betrayed ThunderClan. The hurt in the deputy's eyes was clear.

Grassfur stopped suddenly, his ears pricked forward. "Squirrel!" he hissed, and shot off into the bushes. Blackfire and Mythsong exchanged an amused glance before following him. They found him with the squirrel dangling from his jaws, looking pleased with himself.

"Don't move!" Five cats slithered out of the undergrowth, surrounding the ThunderClan cats. Ambereye faced Blackfire, her lip curled menacingly. Flowerspot, Swiftclaw, Fargaze and the former-RiverClan apprentice Lionpaw made up the rest of the patrol. Their tails lashed and their eyes blazed angrily. Already, they thought of themselves as one Clan.

Ambereye sniffed disdainfully. "Typical ThunderClan, wander into another Clan's territory." She jerked her head to Grassfur's squirrel. "That squirrel belongs to GhostClan."

Blackfire bared her teeth. "He chased it from ThunderClan land!" she hissed, the fur along her spine rising defensively. "And how are we supposed to know where your land even starts? You lazy fox-hearts haven't even set your boarders yet!"

"We were just about to do that now," Flowerspot's voice was soft and calm, but laced with condescending sarcasm. "If you would be so kind as to get off our land and let us do so."

Blackfire and Ambereye held each other's gaze a moment longer. The ThunderClan deputy looked about ready to claw the smug smirk off of Ambereye's face, but with a visible effort she slid her claws in and turned away. "Come on ThunderClan, let's leave these traitors to their work."

Grassfur picked up the squirrel with a pointed look at Ambereye and stalked after Blackfire. Mythsong turned to follow, pausing hesitantly to look over her shoulder. She hated the feeling of their eyes on her as she turned away. Back in ThunderClan, Ambereye would have never let a patrol attack a rival Clan's cat for an accident like this. But now…She just didn't know anymore. Ambereye was also the last cat she would have expected to betray ThunderClan. Who could tell what really went on behind her mismatched eyes?

"The next time we catch you on our land, there _will_ be trouble." Ambereye called after their retreating forms. "Make sure Falconstar understands this."

---

Another longer chapter. Can you feel the tensions running high? Ohhh yeah.

I want to say thank you to everyone who's reviewed so far. Without you guys, I wouldn't be writing this.

Please read and review.


	13. Chapter Eleven

Chapter Eleven

Ghoststar was stretched out on one of the roots of a tall, gnarled stump in the middle of the clearing. His pelted glowed sleek and silver in the bright sun. It was a warm, humid day, and Ghoststar was glad he didn't have to go out on patrols all the time anymore. Ambereye could take care of that; as leader, he could stay in camp and relax until something urgent came up.

And from the crackling tension in the air, he could tell something would happen soon.

He didn't expect the other Clans to let them go unchallenged. They had made that much clear at the Gathering. Even from the safety of his own camp the new leader could feel the other's hatred, their fear and aggression. They were all just waiting for their chance…

Ambereye's scent reached his nose and Ghoststar looked around expectantly. His deputy was looking pleased with herself; more so than usual. Behind her came Flowerspot and Lionpaw, their jaws heavy with prey, then Swiftclaw and Fargaze with prey of their own.

"Any trouble, Ambereye?" Ghoststar called, padding over to meet them. He nodded to the other warriors and they dispersed to drop off their prey on the fresh-kill pile.

"None from ShadowClan. They were no where to be seen." Ambereye reported. "But we ran into a patrol from ThunderClan. Blackfire was leading it, with Grassfur and Mythsong."

The name sent a thunderbolt of fury through his heart. Just from hearing his sister's name he could see her in front of him, staring at him with those wide, innocent blue eyes. _I'm not coming with you._ she was saying to him, surrounded by ThunderClan cats. _I am a ThunderClan cat…_

_A ThunderClan cat indeed!_ Ghoststar raged in his mind. _We'll see how loyal you are when your Clan is crumbling around you. When I'm leader of the whole forest, then you'll wish you'd come with me. Yes, then you'll regret making a fool out of me!_ He pictured pools of blood, Falconstar lying at his feet. Across from their father's body Mythsong stood as though frozen, helplessly small before him.

Oh yes, he intended to make her suffer. Once Ghoststar had his way he would kill ThunderClan one by one, leaving Mythsong alone. He would take their kit brothers to train as GhostClan warriors, but Mythsong…She would die slowly. And painfully. Her death would be as painful as he could possibly imagine.

"Ghoststar? Ghoststar, are you alright?" Ambereye's voice shook him out of his thoughts, brought him back to the real world. She was gazing at him intently, odd eyes glittering curiously.

Ghoststar smiled wearily. "Yes, I'm fine. Thank you for the report, Ambereye." The deputy bowed her head respectfully and backed away. Smirking slightly, Ghoststar turned his gaze to the nursery. Soft voices were coming from inside the thick bramble bush, interrupted here and there by high-pitched squeaks. Ghoststar pushed his way though the small opening.

Flutterwing looked around and purred a greeting. "Hello, Ghoststar. Kits, say hello to our leader."

Three kits huddled at their mother, Jinglewind's side, looking up at him with eyes as round as the full moon. Gently she nudged them forward, and they stumbled over to crowd around Ghoststar's paws.

"Oakstar?" a small dappled she-kit mewed, tilting her head to one side.

Ghoststar suppressed a growl. "No dear, Oakstar is the leader of WindClan. You're not in WindClan anymore; I'm Ghoststar, of GhostClan."

"You're part of the strongest Clan in the forest now." Flutterwing added, leaning forward to lick the smallest kit's ears.

"That's right. GhostClan is the strongest Clan, and soon we'll show that to the other Clans." Ghoststar purred gently, touching the kit in front of him with his tail. "Maybe one day you'll be the leader."

The kit squeaked happily and bounced around him. "I'm gonna be Bouncestar of GhostClan!" she squealed, tackling one of her siblings.

"No way! I'm gonna be Sleetstar!" her brother growled, pushing her off and batting at her. Ghoststar left them wrestling together on the nursery floor, their parents purring over them. The kits had left him feeling light and happy. GhostClan had a future, one that couldn't be stamped out by any of the Clans. They had the most warriors, and the most apprentices. Meanwhile the other Clans were weak and short-handed.

Ghoststar smirked. The first part of his plan had succeeded. It was nearly time for phase two.

"Oh, Ghoststar!" Ghoststar turned to see Dawnflash padding towards him, her creamy fur shining in the cold sunlight. She pressed against him, batting her eyes coyly. Forcing a purr from his throat, Ghoststar twined his tail with hers.

"Hello Dawnflash. How did the patrol go?"

"Oh fine, we found a few scrawny bits of prey and brought them back." Dawnflash flicked her ears dismissively. She wasn't here to report about a patrol.

"The border patrol found more prey than your hunting patrol, then."

"Don't be like that!" Dawnflash pulled away with a jerk, setting her face into a pout. "Here I am trying to bond with you, and you're still all business. Don't tell me you're letting your leader duties get the best of your emotions."

Ghostfire had to fight back a snort of laughter. If only she knew. "Of course not, love." He purred as gently as he could, licking her ears affectionately. She practically melted under his touch, wriggling up against him again. "I've just got a couple of things on my mind. Why don't you meet me in my den in a little bit, and we can share a bit of rabbit?"

Dawnflash rubbed her cheek against his. "Okay." Shooting one last seductive look over her shoulder, she pulled a rabbit from the fresh-kill pile and dragged it under the sprawling roots of a huge dead tree at the edge of the camp.

An opening was nestled where the roots met the trunk, crumbling down into an open cavern. The roots made the only roof, with openings to let in the sun. Ghoststar had piled leaves over the roots to make it water proof, giving the den a soft green light. Overall, he liked the place.

Watching Dawnflash pad away, Ghoststar gave a shudder. It disgusted him, the way he acted around her. Really he had no feelings for the she-cat at all. She was just a tool, a thing to manipulate in order to get what he wanted. Sometimes he wondered if it would just be easier to kill her. He'd got what he wanted from her; recruits from ShadowClan. She was no longer any use.

But no, that wouldn't do. He had to keep up appearances, after all. If she were to die, or if he were to 'break up' with her, her siblings would be mad. If she left Slashwind and Swiftclaw would certainly go with her.

Heaving a sigh, Ghoststar padded after her slowly, his eyes fixed on the ground.

Two ginger paws in front of him halted his progress. Looking up with a scowl on his face, Ghoststar met Sparrowflight's nervous gaze. "What is it, Sparrowflight?"

The medicine cat was fidgeting nervously. Any cat could see she was hardly confident in her own ability to speak, let alone interpret StarClan's words. "Um, Ghoststar…At the ceremony where you got your nine lives, did anything…Strange happen?" she asked shakily, not meeting his eyes.

"What do you mean?"

"Well…When I got my full medicine cat name, StarClan told me a prophecy." Sparrowflight admitted, dropping her voice to a whisper. "They said, 'The new shall rip the old asunder and threaten all we know. Before peace is restored ghost must fade to myth, or the forest will burn.'"

Ghoststar's heart skipped a beat. He had hoped that if he ignored the prophecy and didn't think about it, it would just go away. But as Sparrowflight repeated it his brother's words echoed in his ears. This wasn't going away, was it?

Well, that didn't mean he should worry about it.

Swelling up to his full size, the silver tom snarled, "Why are you wasting my time with nonsense like this?" Sparrowflight shrank away from him in fear. "You're the medicine cat; you figure out what it means! That's your job, isn't it?"

Sparrowflight was pressed to the ground, her eyes wide and anguished. "B-But Ghoststar, I think it's about you!"

"You _think?_" Ghoststar stepped forward so he was nose-to-nose with the terrified medicine cat. "You _think?!_ I don't have time for what you _think_. Don't you dare speak to me about this again until you _know_ how to do your job!"

"But—"

"Now why don't you run back to your den and make up some poultices are whatever you cats do." He turned away and whipped his tail across her muzzle. She flinched, but took another step towards him anyway. "Here we are, leaf-bare creeping up in a few moons, and my medicine cat spends more time babbling about her _feelings_ then taking care of the Clan."

Sparrowflight planted herself in front of him again, her jaw set in determination but her ears flat against her head in fear. "Interpreting StarClan is part of my job too."

"So come talk to me when you've figured something out." Ghoststar shoved her out of the way and headed towards his den. "Like a _good_ little medicine cat."

He smirked as he heard her scurry back to her den. That should keep her quiet for a while.

---

peo is lazy! peo is forgetful! peo should have uploaded a new chapter months ago! I don't have a good excuse, so here it is! The next one will come shortly! I hope!

Please read and review, you know I love you guys. 3


	14. Chapter Twelve

**Chapter Twelve**

Nightmares were quick becoming a part of Mythsong's everyday life. Every night they plagued her with images of fire and visions of her friends torn apart at Ghoststar's claws. She learned to sleep a little off from the others so that her twitching in her sleep wouldn't disturb the others. But her friends were worried. Wiseowl especially ask her every day why she thought the nightmares always came. She never had an answer.

Today she was stretched out on a rock near the rock wall bordering the camp, soaking in the warm sunlight. Her mind was blissfully empty, and for once she had nothing to worry about. A sound from above her made her crack an eye open, watching Falconstar scale the cliff down into the main clearing. He met Flashinglight and Magicnight as they came in from a patrol. Mythsong angled her ears towards them to eavesdrop.

"…seems edgy." Flashinglight was saying. "The patrol we met was every defensive."

"Did they look thin?" Falconstar frowned thoughtfully.

Magicnight shook her head. "Nah, they seemed well fed. But one of them had some recently healed wounds on him."

"GhostClan must be causing trouble for them." Dewdrop growled, padding over to join them with Sparklepool. With so few warriors around, the two seemed to consider themselves senior warriors these days.

Sparklepool looked smug. "We should have seen it coming."

"Do we want to help them?" Featherglow's soft mew cut in. The other warrior's fell silent whenever the gentle medicine cat spoke.

Falconstar's frown deepened. "As of right now, it isn't our business." he sighed finally. Anyone could tell it was against his better judgment to let another Clan suffer alone, but they simply couldn't spare anyone to help. "If the situation gets worse, we'll—"

He was cut off by a cat barreling into the clearing. His white fur was soaked in blood and he immediately collapsed once he reached the leader. Dewdrop and Sparklepool drew back in disgust, while Featherglow raced to the cat's side. Mythsong jumped up and padded over as well, her fur standing on end. This reeked of Ghoststar's doing.

"You're Icepaw, of ShadowClan, right?" the medicine cat soothed, seeming to produce cobwebs out of thin air.

The apprentice nodded. "There's a raid…At camp. GhostClan." he wheezed, every breath a labor. "We…need help…" His head slumped to the side as he passed out.

Falconstar didn't hesitate any longer. "Blackfire, take a patrol to help. Bring Mythsong, Magicnight, Sparklepool, Dewdrop and Flashinglight to help. Go!" Blackfire nodded and raced out of camp. Mythsong scrambled to follow her as she was pushed out of the way by Flashinglight and Sparklepool.

In a heartbeat they had crossed the border and were pounding towards the ShadowClan camp. Mythsong's heartbeat came through loud in her ears like a drum. The forest was silent.

They arrived at camp too late. The fighting was over, and the medicine cat Dancestep walked like a ghost among the tattered looking warriors. One cat lay without moving in the middle of the clearing. Fablestar was crouched beside the dead cat, a light breeze stirring her blue tabby pelt. Mythsong realized with a jolt that the cat was Shiverbranch, ShadowClan's deputy.

Blackfire approached the mourning leader but was stopped Emberlight, a bright ginger and white she-cat. Her pelt was matted with blood and a deep scratch over her right eye dripped into the dust. "You're too late." she mewed bluntly.

"We can see that, thanks." Dewdrop snapped before Blackfire slapped her tail over the warrior's mouth.

Emberlight ignored the comment. "As you can see, Shiverbranch is dead. I am the new deputy."

"What happened?" Blackfire asked in a hushed tone.

The new deputy let out a sigh. She seemed to have aged a hundred years since the Gathering. "GhostClan came out of no where." she began wearily. "Before we knew what was happening, Ghoststar dropped out of a tree on top of Shiverbranch. He…killed him quickly. Then the rest of his warriors, practically the whole Clan, jumped down from the trees all around the camp and surrounded us. Ghoststar told us to surrender, or he would kill every one of us."

"They jumped out of the trees?" Magicnight gasped incredulously. Emberlight nodded somberly.

"They must have climbed up there without us knowing…I don't remember really what happened next…The next thing I knew, Dawnflash was on top of me." Her voice cracked and she closed her eyes before continuing, "Icepaw pulled her off of me. I told him to run and get help from anyone. He ran off and Dawnflash came back.

"Then I remember…everyone stopped. Ghoststar had given some sort of signal, and they all fled. That's when I saw Fablestar lying in the clearing with…With her throat cut. We were afraid it was too much for StarClan to heal."

Blackfire watched Dancestep speaking softly to Fablestar. Cobwebs were wrapped firmly around her neck. "You were lucky."

"Yes. And unlucky."

"But there's nothing we can do now." Sparklepool sniffed. The scorn in her voice made Mythsong want to claw her ears off. "So we may as well go home."

Blackfire seemed about to object, but Emberlight waved her tail dismissively. "Yes, we can manage on our own for now. Send Icepaw home when he is fit to travel." Without a second look she padded away to join the leader and medicine cat around their fallen deputy.

Reluctantly, Blackfire led them home again. The return trip was much slower and less urgent. As they walked Dewdrop, Sparklepool and Flashinglight had their heads together, deep in conversation. Blackfire marched on head, her tail cocked over her head as if daring an enemy to spring out at her. Magicnight drifted back towards Mythsong.

"A patrol of all she-cats is never a good idea." she teased, lightening the mood. Mythsong giggled a little.

"Yeah, without a tom around to act like an idiot, we've got no one to make fun of." The two stifled laughter. The other three looked around disdainfully, as though their laughter was some sort of infectious disease. Magicnight stuck out her tongue at them and they turned away in disgust.

The patrol was immediately surrounded when they entered camp. Questions bombarded them from all sides. Mythsong wriggled free of the group, nearly tripping over an excited Swiftkit as she went. She did bump into another cat. Looking up she met the worried green eyes of Wiseowl.

"Are you alright?" he whispered, stepping back to give her room to breath.

She nodded breathlessly, glancing back at where Falconstar was demanding quiet. "Can we get out of here? I really don't want to hear the story again."

Wiseowl nodded and led the way out of camp through a hole in the barrier. He walked a little ahead of her while she trailed behind, silently lost in thought. There was no attempt at conversation; there was little to say to each other. But Mythsong welcomed the presence of anther cat. Just knowing that he was there in case she went insane was comforting.

They stopped by the lake, where Wiseowl turned to face her again. His eyes were concerned, but he said nothing.

"I don't know what to do, Wiseowl." Mythsong blurted out. The words sounded like they belonged to someone else.

Wiseowl blinked. "You don't have to do anything."

"Yes I do! Ghoststar is _my_ brother."

"And Falconstar's son." Wiseowl retorted calmly. "Why should he be your responsibility?"

Mythsong dug her claws into the ground. "Because he told me about this moons before it happened." she admitted, gritting her teeth as though she were in pain. "The night we were made apprentices."

A small chuckle escaped Wiseowl and she looked up sharply. He was smiling at her. Why was he smiling? He should be angry!

"You can't have known he would go through with it." the small tom reasoned, flicking his tail over her nose. She flinched away, hissing. "Plenty of cats say things like that they don't mean. You couldn't have known this would happen."

"But I knew him better than anyone." Mythsong fretted. "I should have—"

"It's in the past." Wiseowl's voice was suddenly very firm. "The only thing you can do now is move on. Ghoststar made his own choice, and you made yours. He left, you stayed. Wouldn't you say you're better off for it?"

Mythsong's mind focused on Dewdrop, Sparklepool and Flashinglight. She knew they talked about her behind her back. They wanted to turn the Clan against her and drive her out. It didn't feel safe, even in her own nest, with them always hanging around and waiting for her to slip up.

But then she thought of Magicnight and Grassfur, two friends that had always supported her. Then of course Falconstar and Gustflight would never let anyone drive her away. Blackfire, her old mentor, always trusted her with tasks usually left to the senior warriors. There were her baby brothers, looking to her to teach them how to survive in the world. And Crouchpaw, who always looked up to her when they shared a den.

And how could she forget Wiseowl? Now that she thought about it, he had always been there. He had always given her tips and helped with her duties when she was an apprentice. He comforted her when Racepaw died, though at the time she had pushed him away. Somehow, she had forgotten all those times, those subtle gestures of kindness.

"I suppose I am." Mythsong whispered, forcing a smile. Wiseowl smiled back. They started back towards camp, walking in step this time.

---

I will let you make your own judgments on Mythsong and Wiseowl's friendship. I don't want to spoil anything. :P

Please read and review. 3


	15. Chapter Thirteen

**Chapter Thirteen**

The new moon was a good secret keeper. Nothing was given away under the cover of that blackest night when the moon did not show her face. The stars were hidden by swatches of wispy clouds, peaking through every now, casting the world into even greater darkness. StarClan did not show their face on this night. It was just the way Ghoststar liked it.

The last attack had been an assessment. All he wanted was to weaken, and to scare. With their deputy dead and leader down a life, ShadowClan was as shaken and vulnerable as a baby mouse. And Ghoststar intended to snatch up that mouse in one last gulp.

Under the cover of a starless night, GhostClan moved silently through the forest. Ghoststar led the way with Ambereye slinking along on his right side and Dawnflash on his left. His right was bristling for a fight, while his left still held apprehensions. Soon, her fears would vanish. She would be with her Clanmates soon, when ShadowClan was part of GhostClan.

Pausing a few fox-lengths before the entrance, Ghoststar nodded to Ambereye. The deputy shot forward into the darkness, disappearing into the tunnel leading to camp. A moment later there was a startled scream, quickly silenced.

"Move." Ghoststar hissed. He flew through the tunnel into camp, giving a flying leap over the unmoving cat who had been keeping watch over the camp. The scream had been enough to wake the rest of the Clan, and already the warriors were coming out of their dens. There were pathetically few of them. GhostClan easily outnumbered them.

As all hell broke loose, Ghoststar made a beeline for Fablestar's den. All he needed was for her full surrender. Or her body. Either would do, really.

Before he cold reach her den Emberlight jumped in front of him, baring her teeth savagely. Ghoststar tried to dodge around her but with surprising speed she caught hold of his scruff in her teeth and threw him a tail-length back the way he came. In the time it took for him to catch his breath she was on top of him, snapping her teeth at his throat.

_I underestimated this one._ Ghoststar kicked out hard with his back legs and felt them connect in her stomach. The air rushed out of Emberlight's lungs and she flew back, landing in a heap on the ground. Ghoststar lunged at the deputy for the killing blow, but she rolled away and lashed out savagely. Her claws raked his cheek as he tried to pull away in time. Snarling, Ghoststar jumped over her and ran haphazardly for Fablestar's den. _I don't have time for this!_

He felt Emberlight's claws in his flanks again but he ignored it and kept running. Snakebite made a flying leap over his head and landed squarely on Emberlight's back, effectively distracting her from Ghoststar. With a smirk, he skidded into her den.

Empty.

"Looking for me?" Claws pierced his back and again and he left out a shriek in spite of himself. Fablestar was on top of him, her claws digging into his shoulders like the thorns of a bramble bush. Surprisingly heavy, she forced his chin into the dirt and sank her teeth into his scruff.

Panicking, Ghoststar heaved desperately under her, throwing all his strength into pushing his paws into the ground. Fablestar's weight lifted off her back and she was thrown off, cracking her head against the hard floor of the den and passing out. Ghoststar approached her slowly, grinning and licking blood from is lips.

Taking his sweet time, Ghoststar pressed a paw to her throat, claws retracted. He heard her breath become shallower and more labored. At the last moment her eyes flew open, fixing on his with fear and anger. Then they went dull and her breathing stopped altogether. Still smiling, he stepped back and hunkered down to wait. He had all night.

Finally her limbs twitched and she gasped, gulping down air frantically. Her eyes refocused and fixated on Ghoststar. Unfettered hatred shone in their depths.

"You can surrender, you know." Ghoststar chuckled softly. He knew the tone would infuriate her. "Then I won't have to kill you again."

"You got lucky." Fablestar spat, unsheathing her claws. "You're hardly more than a kit, you know. I've lived through five lifetimes in the time it's taken you to get your warrior name. You can kill me as many times as you like, you can take my Clan away from me and you can slaughter my warriors. But you will never be as smart as me—"

"You're wrong!" Ghoststar howled, launching himself at her. Blindly he dug his claws into her face, tearing at her skin in a fit of rage.

"You'll never be as strong as me…" Fablestar cackled. A hard blow connected with the side of his head, bowling him over. His ears were still ringing with the impact of hitting the floor of the den when Fablestar's claws were in him again, dragging down the length of his back.

Ghoststar twisted desperately, sinking his teeth into her paw and dragging her to the ground. He pinned her down, raking his claws through her belly fur. But she was still smiling. One of her eyes was closed and bloodied and her nose sliced open, but she was still smiling. Her weak struggles hardly fazed him but _she was still smiling._

"And you'll never hurt me the way I can hurt you." she hissed, her voice injecting venom straight into his veins. An insane laugh rattled his bones. "What would Racepaw say if he could see you now?"

"_Shut up!_" Ghoststar roared. His vision went red and he sank his teeth into her throat. Blood gushed around his muzzle, filling his mouth with the sticky red liquid. He jerked his head back, ripping a gaping hole in her throat. Her laughter became a gurgling sound as blood flowed from her torn jugular. Her one working eye glazed over and Ghoststar jumped off. Once again, she stopped moving.

This time when she returned to the world of the living, she did not get up. The wound at her neck started to spurt blood again. It was slower though, as though the wound had partially healed. It was still fatal, and she fell into the trance for a third time.

Again she woke up again, this time with the wound fully healed. Panting, Fablestar pulled herself to her feet. Ghoststar was standing over her, his face twisted with rage and hatred.

Fablestar laughed hoarsely. "Finally I see your true face." she rasped. "The true face of evil."

"Will you surrender?" Ghoststar growled through gritted teeth.

"Never."

"Then this is goodbye."

---

Ghoststar padded slowly into the clearing, dragging Fablestar's body behind him. She left a smear of blood across the ground as she slid over it like an oversized piece of prey. He had composed himself again, swearing to never lose control like that again. The next time, he would take the leader down before they could try any mindgames.

Out in the main camp, the fighting had stopped. His warriors had pinned each of the ShadowClan warriors, preventing them from attempting even a wiggle. Emberlight was glaring at him from under the huge bulk of Chaosblast, with Slashwind padding around the two ominously.

Tossing the body into the center of the clearing, Ghoststar announced, "Fablestar is dead, and GhostClan claims ShadowClan's camp and territory as their own." He flicked his tail and his warriors released the ShadowClan cats, though they made it clear that they were still ready to kill at a moment's notice. "Those of you who wish to join GhostClan, come to me now. Those who do not pledge their allegiance to GhostClan will be taken as prisoners and slaves."

After a moment's hesitation, a few cats stepped towards him. He recognized them from Gatherings as Rainfall, Forgottensong, Harshwind and Gemeye. The others stayed where they were, baring their teeth. Ghoststar noticed that Emberlight was still down to one eye from the injury Ambereye gave her in the first strike. This fact amused him.

"I'll never join you!" A white apprentice screamed, bolting up to stand rigid at his paws. "You killed my mother!" His voice cracked at the last words and he went to bury his nose in Fablestar's fur. Ghoststar curled his lip. How pathetic.

Flowerspot stepped forward and snatched the apprentice up by the scruff. Without a trace of compassion she threw him back towards the other prisoners. He landed at Emberlight's feet, groaned, and lay still.

Emberlight stared at the apprentice for a moment, then glared up at Ghoststar. "What about Whitebark? Would you kill a pregnant cat?" She jerked her nose towards a plump she-cat who quickly ducked behind Dancestep with a frightened whimper. "And Bravesong, our elder?"

Ghoststar studied the elder she indicated. He met his gaze with fierce yellow eyes, but Ghoststar could tell he was ancient. There was no way he could do any sort of work around camp. "We have no use for weak elders. Dawnflash?"

Dawnflash gave a start at the sound of her name and looked at her leader in alarm. Ghoststar carefully set his face into an unreadable mask. _You'll get over it eventually._ He told her silently. _If you want to impress me, you'll earn your keep._

Swallowing, Dawnflash lunged at Bravesong and pinned him down. She closed her eyes and sank her fangs into his throat, tearing it open the way Ghoststar had done with Fablestar. The elder thrashed for a moment, then went still.

"As for the queen," Ghoststar spoke over the outraged gasps from the ShadowClan cats, even the ones who had joined him. "We would not kill her or her kits. As soon as they are born they will be taken by a GhostClan cat, and Whitebark will be a prisoner, same as the rest. Unless she decides to join GhostClan between now and them.

"Longpaw, be a good boy and run home to fetch everyone back at camp. We're moving in."

---

I had so much fun writing this. I managed to get a crowning moment of awesome in for Fablestar before she died. 3

As a bonus, here are the updated allegiances as of this chapter:

Allegiances

**ThunderClan**

**Leader: **Falconstar-Long-legged golden tabby tom (Seven lives, Mate: Gustflight)

**Deputy: **Blackfire-Black she-cat with white streaks on her face  
**  
Medicine Cat: **Featherglow-Pale golden she-cat

**Warriors: **Flashinglight-Small gray-and-white tom with amber eyes

Magicnight-pretty calico she-cat with green eyes

Apprentice: Wingedpaw

Dewdrop-White she-cat with yellow eyes

Sparklepool-Gray she-cat with speckles of white (Mate: Grassfur)

Grassfur-Pale ginger tom with black stripes (Mate: Sparklepool)

Wiseowl-Small light brown tom with green eyes

Apprentice: Crouchpaw

Mythsong-Bright golden she-cat with deep blue eyes

**Apprentices: **Crouchpaw-Tall ginger tom (Mother: Sparklepool)

Wingedpaw-muscular gray she-cat with amber eyes (Mother: Fargaze)

**Queens: **Gustflight-Pretty silver she-cat (Mate: Falconstar)

**Elders: **Strippedfur-Dark brown tom with unusual white tabby stripes

Ticklewisker-Skinny gray tom

**Kits:** Rustlekit-Energetic golden tabby tom (Mother: Gustflight)

Nettlekit-Light brown tabby tom (Mother: Gustflight)

Swiftkit-Silver tabby with blue eyes (Mother: Gustflight)

**ShadowClan: Now part of GhostClan.**

**WindClan**

**Leader: **Oakstar (M, six lives)

**Deputy: **Rustfur (F)

Apprentice: Truepaw (M)

**Medicine Cat: **Poppyspot (F)

**Warriors: **Snowstorm (F)

Apprentice: Mousepaw (F)

Marshstep (M)

Hailstorm (M)

Daybreak (F)

Stormdancer (M)

Leaffall (M)

Thrushflight (M)

Talltree (F)

Kindleflare (F)

Blackfang (F)

**Queens: **None

**Elders: **Dropstep (M)

Nightfall (F)

**RiverClan**

**Leader:** Crescentstar (F, five lives)

**Deputy: **Ravenwing (M)

**Medicine Cat: **Cloudfur (M)

Apprentice: Glowingpaw (F)

**Warriors: **Longwhisker (M)

Apprentice: Shortpaw (M)

Runningstream (F)

Apprentice: Scalepaw (M)

Wavewind (F)

Strongwind (M)

Wakestorm (F)

Poolstep (F)

Duststorm (M)

**Queens: **Badgerface

Rushclaw

**Elders: **Kinktail (M)

**GhostClan**

**Leader:** Ghoststar-Silver long-haired tom with pale blue eyes (Nine lives)

**Deputy: **Ambereye-Dark ginger she-cat with one brown eye and one blue eye

Apprentice: Ivypaw

**Medicine Cat: **Sparrowflight-Small pale ginger she-cat with a dappled coat

**Warriors: **Snakebite-Dark brown tabby tom

Apprentice: Turtlepaw

Scarstripe-Gray tom with three long scars on his left shoulder

Fargaze-Small gray she-cat with white chest and amber eyes (Mate: Chaosblast)

Chaosblast-Burly brown tabby tom (Mate: Fargaze)

Dawnflash-Creamy yellow she-cat

Slashwind-Black she-cat with a white belly

Apprentice: Longpaw

Swiftclaw-Dark brown tabby tom with yellow eyes

Apprentice: Fallpaw

Flutterwing-Jittery gray tom with blue eyes (Mate-Jinglewind)

Flowerspot-tortoiseshell she-cat with pale green eyes

Apprentice: Lionpaw

Hurricaneforce-Sturdy black tom with yellow eyes

Apprentice: Winkpaw

Rainfall-speckled gray tom with white paws, formerly of ShadowClan

Forgottensong-golden she-cat, formerly of ShadowClan

Harshwind-black tabby tom, formerly of ShadowClan (Mate: Gemeye)

Gemeye-light gray she-cat with white paws and amber eyes, formerly of ShadowClan (Mate: Harshwind)

**Apprentices: **Ivypaw- light brown she-cat with wavy darker stripes

Longpaw-long-legged black tom (Mother: Gemeye)

Fallpaw-clumsy gray tabby tom (Mother: Gemeye)

Lionpaw-pale ginger tom with deep amber eyes

Winkpaw-small golden she-cat with folded ears

Turtlepaw-small brown tabby tom with amber eyes (Mother: Fargaze)

**Queens: **Jinglewind-pretty dappled she-cat with a white chest and paws

Whitebark-White and black she-cat with yellow eyes, formerly of ShadowClan (Mate: Cragtooth)

**Kits:** Littlekit-very small gray she-cat

Sleetkit-Dark gray tabby tom with blue eyes

Bouncekit-energetic dappled she-cat

**Prisoners:** Emberlight of ShadowClan (F)

Dancestep of ShadowClan (M)

Eternalstare of ShadowClan (F)

Cragtooth of ShadowClan (M) (Mate: Whitebark)

Icepaw of ShadowClan (M)


	16. Chapter Fourteen

**Chapter Fourteen**

"What do you mean GhostClan has taken over ShadowClan?!"

Mythsong's mouth fell open at the sound of her father's scream. The squirrel she'd caught tumbled to the ground, forgotten, as she and Magicnight raced to where Grassfur and Flashinglight were crouched in front of the leader. Falconstar's fur stood on end and his eyes were wild with fear and anger. Anyone would think he'd gone nuts.

In an instant Featherglow was at his side, whispering urgently into his ear. The fur along his back flattened, but his ears remained back against his head. After a moment he gave an irritated hiss and waved her away. Mythsong edged closer to her father, touching his shoulder with her tail.

More calmly, Falconstar repeated, "What do you mean, GhostClan has taken over ShadowClan?"

"Exactly how it sounds." Flashinglight snapped, gaining back a bit of her sass now that Falconstar had stopped screaming. "We came across a patrol at the border. Rainfall very kindly explained that Fablestar is dead and GhostClan has taken up residence in ShadowClan's camp. They claim all of ShadowClan's territory, as well as their own."

"This is outrageous!" Gustflight yowled, lashing her tail. "How can allow him to do this? Murder is against the warrior code! Ghoststar has murdered an entire Clan!"

Falconstar winced at the name 'Ghoststar'. Mythsong pressed against him comfortingly.

"It may not all be lost." Grassfur pointed out. "The patrol alluded that they have prisoners. That means at least some loyal ShadowClan cats are still alive."

"We have to save them!" Magicnight planted herself right in front of Falconstar. The look in her eyes said she was not taking no for an answer.

Falconstar drew back, his mouth pulled in a frown. He looked to his deputy as she padded over to join the group. They exchanged a few hushed words. Finally Falconstar nodded and jumped onto Highledge, giving the traditional summons.

"Cats of ThunderClan, I have just been informed that ShadowClan has been defeated and consumed by GhostClan." Falconstar announced to startled shrieks from the cats who had not yet heard. "Fablestar is dead, and ShadowClan is more or less destroyed.

"But all hope is not lost." he went on when the Clan quieted down. "We have reason to believe that at least a few loyal ShadowClan cats are being kept prisoner in the territory. ShadowClan needs our help, or we risk losing one of the four Clans." The emphasis on the word 'four' made Mythsong uneasy.

"We must rescue ShadowClan, if we can. Mythsong, Magicnight." Mythsong's head snapped up at the sound of her name. "You two are the best trackers in the Clan. I want you to sneak onto ShadowClan territory, find the prisoners, and bring them back to camp. At the first sign of danger, come right back. _Do not_ let yourselves get caught." There was a desperate note in his voice. "Understand?"

"Yes Falconstar!" Magicnight chirped. "Come on, Mythsong!" Before Mythsong could protest she had raced out of camp. Groaning inwardly, the golden she-cat followed her energetic friend in yet another mad dash to ShadowClan territory.

When they neared the border Magicnight stopped very suddenly, nearly sending Mythsong careening into her. They were at the shore of the lake, where the stream that formed the border joined with the mass of water. Waving her tail for Mythsong to follow, Magicnight waded out a tail-length into the water and sloshed toward ShadowClan territory.

_This is crazy._ Mythsong gritted her teeth and splashed after the calico she-cat. Even this late into greenleaf the water was chilly, soaking through her belly fur and making her shiver.

"Can't we go by land like normal cats?" she hissed as loud as she dared. Though they were technically in the lake, they had already crossed the border long ago.

Magicnight angled her ears back towards the other she-cat. "We can't risk leaving a trail behind." she whispered back. "This way the water will wash away most of our scent, and they won't be able to track us through the water."

"They'll still scent ThunderClan on us."

"That's why we'll be rolling in that before we go any further." Magicnight stopped and pointed with her tail towards a clump of thick, leafy green plants growing not far from the lakeshore. The ground looked particularly swampy around them, though they looked innocent enough. Grinning, Magicnight splashed out of the water towards the plants.

Mythsong pulled a face. "What are those?"

"Skunk cabbage!" Magicnight replied cheerfully. She dropped to the ground and rolled over on top of the plants, breaking the stems and unleashing a horrific smell.

"StarClan! That'll stick in your pelt for moons!" Mythsong spat, jumping away from the disgusting plants.

Magicnight rolled her eyes, padded over to the younger warrior. "That's the idea, innit? Now roll, before someone catches us."

Wrinkling her nose against the stench, Mythsong held her breath and dropped down in the leafy plants. She rolled onto her back and wriggled around, letting the mud and stench seep into her pelt. When she stood up she was coated in a nice layer of filth.

"I smell like a wet skunk." she growled, skin growing hot under her ruined golden pelt.

"Again, that's the idea." Magicnight looked as though she found the whole situation quite amuse, despite the look of her own usually gorgeous black and ginger coat. "Now hurry up, we've gotta find where they're keeping the prisoners."

The two smelly she-cats crept cautiously through the sparse undergrowth, their pawsteps muffled by the carpet of pine needles. Mythsong kept her mouth open to scent for patrols, though it was hard to sort out any other smell than that of the skunk cabbage. Magicnight stopped to examine every bent twig, every small indentation in the ground that meant a cat had left a pawprint there.

Finally Mythsong picked up a vaguely familiar scent, blowing towards them from behind. _Emberlight._ She wasn't alone. "Magicnight, there's a patrol coming from behind us. Quick!" Fast as lightning, both she-cats clawed their way up the nearest tree. Three cats passed below them shortly after. One was the unmistakable ginger pelt of Emberlight.

The ShadowClan deputy looked bedraggled and weak, her pelt matted and smeared with mud and blood. Only one of her eyes was open, the other sealed closed with infection. In the one day that had passed since GhostClan took over ShadowClan's land, she looked like she had aged a thousand years. Clearly, Emberlight would rather become a prisoner than betray her Clan.

Two toms plodded along on either side of her, their jaws laden with prey. Mythsong recognized Chaosblash and a former RiverClan tom named Hurricaneforce. The two were almost identical in size and bulk.

As they watched Emberlight suddenly made a break for it. She rocketed off into the forest before her guards could even understand what had happened. Dropping their prey and screeching bloody-murder, Chaosblast and Hurricaneforce lumbered after her.

"We've gotta follow her!" Magicnight called, dropping down from her perch in the tree.

"Why?" Mythsong groaned, but Magicnight had already pelted off after them. _Aren't we here to find the prisoners? If Emberlight escapes, then we don't have to worry about her!_ But Mythsong had no choice but to follow.

They caught up with the patrol just as Chaosblast tackled Emberlight to the ground. He pinned her down and dug his claws into her shoulders savagely. Magicnight grabbed Mythsong by the scruff and dragged her bodily into the nearest bramble bush.

"Get off me, you great oaf!" the ginger she-cat screamed, struggling valiantly under the larger tom's weight.

"Step aside, Chaosblast." Hurricaneforce rumbled, a sinister edge to his voice. "I know how to break her spirit."

The former ThunderClan warrior did as he was told, leaving Emberlight to Hurricaneforce. The black tom bowled the ginger she-cat over onto her stomach with one swipe from his massive paws and sank his teeth into her scruff. Emberlight screeched with all the fury of StarClan as the huge tom mounted her.

"Don't look." Magicnight slapped her tail over Mythsong's eyes, but she had already closed them. She put her paws over her ears, trying to block out Hurricaneforce's grunts and Emberlight's screams. Was this how Ghoststar led his Clan? Did he know of the horrors going on right under his nose?

Finally it was over and Hurricaneforce kicked a shivering Emberlight to the side. Chaosblast gave his companion an astonished look, but pulled Emberlight up by the scruff. Sandwiching the traumatized she-cat between them, the toms heading back towards the center of the territory.

"Disgraceful." Magicnight spat once they were out of earshot, pulling herself out of the bush. "Come on. Let's see where they're taking her."

Silent as shadows the intruders crept along several lengths behind the patrol. They bypassed where Mythsong knew the camp to be, coming at last to at last to an abandoned badger set nestled in a rocky outcropping. Flowerspot was perched on top of the rocks, presumably guarding the prisoners. Mythsong could hear hushed voices coming from inside, that were suddenly silenced when Hurricaneforce stuck his head into the set.

"Make room, insects. Your leader is back home." the black tom growled, shoving Emberlight towards the shadowy entrance. Emberlight had regained some of her composure and stalked into the prison with her nose in the air, though Mythsong could tell she was still shaking. Hurricaneforce gave her an extra shove for good measure.

"C'mon, let's go get that prey she made us drop." Chaosblast growled. The toms padded off.

"Now to get rid of the fish-face." Magicnight hissed, indicating Flowerspot. Making a face as though she had just swallowed something unpleasant, Magicnight made a strange noise in her throat. Then she called in a voice identical to Ivypaw's, "Flowerspot! Flowerspot, come quick!"

The tortoiseshell she-cat looked around curiously, her pale green eyes flashing. She jumped down from the rock and padded towards them. "Move!" Magicnight shoved Mythsong, forcing her around to the back of the rock pile.

"I didn't know you could do that." Mythsong purred once Flowerspot was out of sight.

"Save it for later. We're on a mission." the calico snapped, skirting around the outcropping to the entrance. She peered into the dark cave and whispered, "Emberlight?"

"What?" the ginger she-cat spat. Mythsong poked her nose in as well and saw the deputy sitting hunched over in the corner, her tail twitching behind her. "Whoever you are, you stink."

"I'm Magicnight, of ThunderClan. Mythsong is with me." Magicnight mewed calmly. "We're here to save you."

"ThunderClan?" an excited murmur went through the cats gathered in the cave. Mythsong counted four of them including Emberlight. One of them was the apprentice who had come to ThunderClan for help little more than a week ago.

Mythsong slipped into the cave, putting her tail on Emberlight's shoulder gently. "Is this everyone? Are you fit to travel?"

Emberlight shook her head. "I'm fine…But they're keeping Dancestep in the camp." Her voice quavered dangerously. "He's making him teach Sparrowflight more about being a medicine cat. And they're keeping Whitebark in the nursery until she has her kits."

"We'll have to get them later." Magicnight's voice sounded from where she kept watch outside of the cave. "Flowerspot's on her way back."

Just as she finished speaking an angry hiss reached Mythsong's ears, followed by a howl of pain. "Come on, quick!" Mythsong yowled, shoving Emberlight out of the den. She herded the others out of the den, picking up the apprentice Icepaw by the scruff when she saw he was too weak to run. Outside the prison Magicnight was wrestling with Flowerspot, the two she-cats clawing at each other with every intention to kill.

"Get out of here!" Magicnight screeched as Flowerspot sank her teeth into her shoulder. "I'll catch up!"

Unable to protest with Icepaw in her mouth, Mythsong swung around and gave one of the ShadowClan cats a hard shove. The raced haphazardly through the forest as if all the demons of the underworld were at their tails. Which they might have been. Mythsong didn't bother to return through the lake as they had come. It was already too late; Ghoststar would know who they were and what they had done.

Crossing the stream in one jump, Mythsong didn't stop once she was in ThunderClan territory. She kept running, blindly barreling through the undergrowth. She could hear the ShadowClan cat's labored breathing behind her but still didn't slow down. Not until she had run into camp, set Icepaw down, and collapsed.

"Mythsong!" Wiseowl was standing over her, but was quickly shoved aside by Falconstar and Blackfire.

"Mythsong, what happened? Where's Magicnight?"

"Did you get all the prisoners?"

"Are you okay?"

"Give her some room to breath!" Emberlight's voice cut through the myriad of voices pounding on Mythsong's ears. The gathered cats backed up a few paces, perhaps more frightened by the look in Emberlight's eye than they were concerned for Mythsong.

The golden she-cat heaved herself with her feet, still gasping for breath. "We got the prisoners out…" she panted. "But the guard spotted us. Magicnight distracted her while we got away. I…I don't know where she is."

"They probably captured her." Emberlight growled. "They'll be keeping her with Dancestep and Whitebark. Along with them, we're all that's left of ShadowClan."

"You have a heavy burden to bear, Emberlight." Falconstar mewed sympathetically, touching her shoulder with his tail. She flinched away from the contact, sudden terror showing on her face. Mythsong winced, remembering what had been forced on her not too long before their escape.

Frowning in confusion, the leader continued, "With Fablestar gone, you're the leader of ShadowClan now. If you want, my medicine cat can take you to the Moonpool to receive your nine lives."

Emberlight eyed him coolly. "I think that would be best. First, I say these words before Fablestar's spirit, so that she may hear and approve my choice." A chill went through the clearing as the ShadowClan cat spoke the all-too familiar words. Emberlight bowed her head mournfully, then announced, "Cragtooth will be the new deputy of ShadowClan."

One of the former prisoners, a large tom white time with a brown tail and head, mewed, "Thank you, Emberlight."

"Cragtooth! Cragtooth!" little Icepaw cheered weakly, bouncing over to the heavyset warrior. Wiseowl took up the cry, adding his melodic voice to the cheer. Mythsong followed suit, and soon all of ThunderClan was cheering, albeit some joined in a bit half-heartedly.

"Everyone should rest up tonight." Falconstar ordered. "The ShadowClan warriors can stay in camp until we reclaim their home. Tomorrow, Featherglow will take Emberlight to the Moonpool. And after that, we will rescue Magicnight and the other ShadowClan cats still in captivity."

Mythsong slumped to the ground again as the meeting broke up. The ShadowClan cats huddled together until Grassfur stepped forward, kindly offering to show them to the warrior's den. Emberlight eyed him suspisciously with her one good eye before agreeing. Though she had never really spoken to Emberlight, it was painful for Mythsong to see her acting so differently around toms now. She even shied away from Cragtooth's touch, her new deputy.

"Mythsong, you need to rest." Wiseowl's voice from right behind her startled her out of her thoughts.

Blinking, Mythsong simply replied, "Y-Yeah."

Inside the warrior's den had been very empty since the GhostClan cats left. Even with the ShadowClan cats, the place seemed devoid of life. As she settled into sleep, Mythsong was very aware of Wiseowl's warmth on her right and the very empty chill on her left where Magicnight usually slept.

**This one is long! And again, it gets PG-13 in there. But I still had fun writing it. Even as secondary characters, I love Magicnight and Emberlight. They're honestly two of my favorite characters in this story, along with Fablestar.**

**Of course, Mythsong and Ghoststar are the main focus~**

**Please read and review. I love you guys.**


	17. Chapter Fifteen

**I've been inspired to continue writing this. I have the next three chapters already written on my computer, so I'll try to remember to upload them while writing up the rest of the story. I hope to finish it before I leave for college in August. It seems a long way off, but time flies fast these days…**

**Chapter Fifteen**

The look on Ghoststar's face was a very careful mask of calm, while inside him anger raged like a tornado. He had already heard what had happened at the prison where he kept his slaves, and who was responsible. He had heard when Flowerspot had needed help subduing _one_ cat. Somehow Magicnight had put up more than enough fight for the former RiverClan cat alone, and Ambereye had to go put an end to it.

Now the deputy dragged Magicnight into the camp by the scruff. The once pretty she-cat was bloodied almost beyond recognition. And somehow, she still had some fight left in her glittering green gaze.

"Magicnight." Ghoststar hissed with deliberate coolness through gritted teeth. "I suspect you were not working alone in this mission. Though I can't say that you would need much help."

"Go to hell, foxheart." the ThunderClan warrior spat at his feet. "I don't have to tell you anything."

Ghoststar wrinkled his nose disapprovingly. She reeked of blood and skunk. "If you will not explain yourself outright, we have ways of making you talk." The leader blinked serenely at Hurricaneforce. The huge warrior stepped forward, his yellow eyes glittering coldly.

A shiver of fear went through Magicnight's body and Ghoststar smirked. He could see she already knew what the former RiverClan cat was capable of.

"Alright, of course I wasn't working on my own!" the calico snapped, her voice shrill. "Falconstar ordered me to come save the prisoners."

"He sent you, all by yourself." Ghoststar cocked an eyebrow.

"Yeah."

"She's lying!" Flowerspot hissed, stepping forward from where Sparrowtail was dressing her wounds. Most of her face and neck were swathed in cobwebs and a nasty gash on her shoulder still dripped blood into the dirt. Her eyes were livid. "Tell the truth, there was another cat with you! That golden wench who ran off with the prisoners."

Ghoststar's head snapped around. "What golden cat?"

Magicnight glared right back at him. "Mythsong. Mythsong escaped with all of your prisoners."

"Mythsong!" The name was ripped from Ghoststar's lips like a curse. Before he knew what he was doing he was on top of Magicnight, pinning down the terrified she-cat and digging his claws into her shoulders. His body moved on its own, fueled by the acid in his veins.

"Don't you dare mention that name in my camp!" the gray tom screeched in Magicnight's face, flecks of spittle landing in her black and orange fur. "I'll kill that slimy bitch! Do you hear me? I'll kill her!"

Gentle teeth in his scruff pulled him off the ThunderClan cat. Dawnflash's scent wreathed around him, surprisingly soothing. Her smell was familiar and soft, rather than the foreign fire flaring in his belly.

"Be calm, my love." the creamy she-cat soothed, twining her tail around his legs. "Angry doesn't suit you."

Ghoststar shrugged her off. It took a physical effort to rearrange his facial features into his usual icy mask. "Scarstripe, Slashwind." he snarled, calling the first two cats he saw. "Get this thing out of my sight. Put her in the old elder's den. We'll use that for the new prison."

"Isn't that risky?" Flutterwing asked, his tail twitching to and fro in apprehension. "They'll be right in camp."

"And easier to watch." Ghoststar replied in a patronizing tone. "What are you waiting for? I gave an order!" Scarstripe and Slashwind scrambled to do as they were told.

A ripple went through Ghoststar's pelt as he forced his fur to lay flat again. _I can't keep getting rattled like this._

"Ambereye!" She slipped silently over to sit before him. "Take Snakebite, Chaosblast, Swiftclaw and Harshwind to attack RiverClan. Kill the deputy if you can, kidnap a kit or apprentice or two if you get the opportunity."

Ambereye blinked serenely. "Shouldn't we go after ThunderClan first?" she mewed sensibly. "They were the cause of the trouble today. Retaliation seems to be in order."

Ghoststar gave her a condescending smile. "Don't you worry, Ambereye." He hissed. "ThunderClan will get what is coming to them, after we have the power of four Clans against them."

A strange look passed over Ambereye's face and was gone in a flash. "As you wish, Ghoststar." She gave a commanding yowl to gather the rest of the attack force to her and raced out of camp.

With that sorted out, Ghoststar made a beeline for the nursery. Flutterwing was sitting just inside the door with Jinglewind, watching the kits play. Finished with her task of escorting Magicnight, Slashwind was with them as well, giggling as the kits romped about the den. Watching her curiously, Ghoststar noticed a slight roundness to her belly that he had not seen earlier.

Whitebark was curled up in a shadowy corner, her back turned to the others. The kits seemed very careful not to go near the ShadowClan queen.

"Greetings, everyone." the leader purred, feeling a real warmth in his chest. Not the strange poison he had felt at Fablestar's last words or at the sound of his sister's name. But another strange fire that wasn't all bad.

"Ghoststar!" Jinglewind squealed like a young apprentice on her first day out of camp. She loved when the leader visited, just to see her and her kits. "Ghoststar, listen to the good news! Slashwind is having kits!"

"They're Snakebite's." the black and white she-cat explained, not meeting Ghoststar's eyes. She was smiling sheepishly. "I haven't told him yet."

"I'll let you do the honors." Ghoststar mewed with a smirk. Slashwind flashed him a grateful look and pushed past him out of the den.

A bundle of fur rolled into his leg and Ghoststar looked down. "Hiya Ghoststar!" Sleetkit squeaked, his dark gray fur sticking up in all directions. "Are you gonna teach us a battle move?"

"Even better." Ghoststar flicked the kit's nose with his tail. "Can you tell me how old you are?"

"We're four and a _half_ moons old!" Littlekit replied, puffing out her chest importantly. Bouncekit jumped top of her and the sisters rolled around yelping and giggling.

"And are you ready to be apprentices?" Ghoststar went on, gently nudging the she-kits apart.

"If course we are!" Bouncekit squealed, pouncing on one of Ghoststar's paws. "It's _boring_ in here!"

Flutterwing picked Bouncekit up by the scruff and deposited her back at Jinglewind's side. "Hold on, Ghoststar." he growled, putting himself between the leader and the kits. "I hope you're not suggesting what I think you are."

Ghoststar shrugged. "If they are ready to be apprentices, there is no reason to make them wait longer. They are strong, healthy and energetic. What difference is one more moon going to make?"

"One and a half moons." Jinglewind corrected him uncertainly.

"Whatever. Kits, what do you say?"

Flutterwing disappeared under a bundle of fur as three excited kits pounced on top of him. "Can we be apprentices, Daddy? Can we can we _pleeeease?_"

"Alright, alright!" Flutterwing gave himself a shake, dislodging the kits irritably. His tail was twitching more than usual. "If Jinglewind agrees."

The three kits turned their pleading looks on their mother. "Alright." Jinglewind conceded after a moment of hesitation.

"We'll have the ceremony in a moment." Ghoststar purred, slipping out of the den.

Flutterwing followed him, stepping in front of him before he could get to Highbranch. "Hey Ghoststar." he growled. "I know you think you've got StarClan on your side, but they don't look favorably on breaking the warrior code. So if anyone puts _one_ scratch on them during training, they're done." The tom fixed him with a hard stare. "Do you understand me? _Done,_ at least until they're six moons old."

Ghoststar fought down the urge to claw his ears off. "I understand, Flutterwing. Now step aside." The warrior did so and Ghoststar jumped into the Highbranch. He still got a smug feeling whenever he sat up here, sinking his claws into the same bark that Fablestar had. Now this was _his_ camp. She was gone, and ShadowClan was no more. Only GhostClan remained.

"All cats old enough to catch their own prey gather here beneath the Highbranch!"

Jinglewind was the first out of the dens, with three well groomed kits at her paws. They were practically vibrating with excitement. Feeling excited himself, Ghoststar called once the Clan was assembled, "By naming new apprentices, GhostClan shows that it will continue to grow and remain strong. Sleetkit, Bouncekit, Littlekit, please come forward."

Ghoststar jumped down from his perch to meet the three as they bounded up to the roots of the tree. "Sleetkit, from now until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Sleetpaw. Scarstripe, you are ready for your first apprentice. Pass on all your strength and cunning to this apprentice."

The scarred gray tom stepped forward importantly and touched noses with his new apprentice. The two backed off to the side while Littlepaw was apprenticed to Chaosblast, and Bouncepaw to Ghoststar himself.

As the meeting broke up, Bouncepaw lived up to her name, prancing around Ghoststar like an overgrown bird. "Can we start training now, Ghoststar?" she crooned, batting at his paws.

"Tomorrow, little one." Ghoststar mewed tiredly. "Today has been too busy. Tomorrow we will begin training."

"Oh. Okay." Bouncepaw noticeably drooped, watching her siblings get led out of camp with their mentors. "I'll talk to the other apprentices, then." She traipsed off towards the apprentice's den.

Ghoststar watched her with interest. _The day will come that you will be able to prove yourself to me, little one._

_OoOoOoOoOo_

"Ghoststar."

"Ambereye. I assume the raid went well."

"Ravenwing is dead. I killed her with my own claws. I hid out after the battle to see Crescentstar name Runningstream as the new deputy."

"Is that all?"

"We also kidnapped Glowingpaw, their medicine cat apprentice."

"Excellent. I'm sure we can convince her to train under Sparrowflight."

"That is all I have to report, Ghoststar. With your permission, I will take my leave."

"Very well. Good night, Ambereye."

"Good night."

**I'm curious to see who is still on Ghoststar's side. Even though he is a sociopath, it's still easy to sympathize with him, I think. **

**Anyway.**

**Please read and review~**


	18. Chapter Sixteen

**Chapter Sixteen**

"Welcome back, Emberstar. Everything went well?"

The ginger she-cat gave Mythsong a small smile. "Yes. StarClan accepted me as the new leader of ShadowClan." she mewed, sounding tired beyond her years. "And they told me I have a lot of work ahead of me, as if I didn't already know."

Mythsong gave her an encouraging flick with her tail. "You'll always have ThunderClan to help you. My father can't keep from reaching out to any cat in need."

Emberstar's expression suddenly went sour. "I don't need the help of any tom." she snapped. "I will stand on my own two legs, as long as they hold me up." Turning away, she stalked briskly into camp. Featherglow came behind her more slowly, casting a disapproving glance after the retreating leader.

"She is very touchy when it comes to the mention of toms." the tortoiseshell medicine cat commented serenely. "When we spoke about the future of the Clans or how the prey is running, she is quite animated. But as soon as I mentioned Cragtooth, Falconstar or any other tomcat, she clammed up. It's very odd."

Mythsong swallowed uncomfortably. "When we were on ShadowClan land…We witnessed something." she mewed in a hushed voice. "One of the GhostClan cats…Forced her down and…"

Featherglow flicked her tail, closing her eyes. "That explains a lot."

"What?"

"Never mind. See you around, Mythsong." The medicine cat padded across the camp and slipped into her den. It struck Mythsong suddenly how different Featherglow was from her sister, Magicnight. Where Magicnight was excitable and nosy, Featherglow was quiet and reserved. Mythsong knew nothing about Featherglow besides her occupation and sister.

Shaking her head to clear it, Mythsong looked up and spotted Wiseowl talking to his apprentice and Icepaw outside of the apprentice's den. Putting on a smile, the she-cat padded over and called, "Hey guys, what's up?"

"Mythsong!" Wiseowl's face lit up at the sight of her. "You're just the cat I need. Falconstar asked me to take Crouchpaw and Icepaw out for training, but I don't think I can handle the both of them. Could you take Crouchpaw hunting while I assess where Icepaw is in his training?"

"Sure." Mythsong's heart skipped a beat. She had never trained with an apprentice before! It was strange that with so many warriors missing she was suddenly needed for tasks usually left to the older warriors. But Sparklepool and Dewdrop were out on patrol already, Flashinglight was training Wingedpaw while Magicnight was away and Grassfur was deep in conversation with Blackfire and Emberstar.

Wiseowl touched his nose to hers briefly. "You're a life saver, Mythsong. Come on, Icepaw!" The toms raced out of camp.

"You ready, Crouchpaw?" Mythsong asked, forcing her voice not to shake.

The apprentice shrugged. "As ready as I'll ever be."

Mythsong led the way out into the forest with Crouchpaw plodding along behind her. The usually playful tom kept his eyes downcast and was silent the whole way. Frowning, Mythsong stopped when they came to the old abandoned twoleg nest. "Why don't we try here?"

"Okay."

"What can you smell?"

Crouchpaw lifted his nose into the air and took a long whiff of the air. "Mouse, mostly. And a squirrel. The rest is hard to smell over the catmint."

"Good nose." Mythsong commented. "We can bring some catmint home for Featherglow when we're done hunting. Why don't you go after that squirrel?"

"Don't patronize me." the long-legged tom snapped suddenly. He whipped around and stalked off into the undergrowth, leaving a dazed Mythsong behind him.

Worried, Mythsong crept after him. She followed his scent around to the other side of the abandoned nest where he was stalking a squirrel. With careful precision the ginger tom came up behind it. The rodent looked around and froze; Crouchpaw did as well. The second the squirrel moved Crouchpaw jumped, snatching it by the tail and dragging it down off the tree. It was dead in a second.

"Good job!" Mythsong cheered, thoroughly impressed. "Wiseowl's taught you very well."

Crouchpaw rounded on her, snarling. "I said, don't patronize me! I don't need your sympathy."

Anger got the better of Mythsong's better judgement and she smacked Crouchpaw over the head with a sheathed paw. "Who's giving you sympathy?" she snarled right back. "Don't you know how to take a compliment? Now calm down."

"Who cares if I'm a good hunter? I'll never be as good as my sister." Crouchpaw pouted, ducking away from her.

"Your sister?" Mythsong remembered the two of them had always been together. They would look on in awe while she, Ghoststar and Racepaw would show off in front of the younger apprentices. "Ivypaw. She's in GhostClan."

"Yeah, she's in GhostClan." Crouchpaw gave her a hostile glare. "She wanted me to join. She always hated mother, and would do anything to get away from her, even if it meant betraying her Clan. And if it weren't for _your_ brother, she'd still be here!"

The anger was back. "Do you think I _like_ knowing every day that my brother is a traitor?" Her tail lashed and it took everything in her power to stop from clawing him. "Do you think I like the looks I get, like I'm the one who betrayed ThunderClan? I don't! Newsflash, Crouchpaw, I'm not the same cat as Ghoststar. He made his choice and I made mine." she repeated the words Wiseowl had said to her that day by the lakeshore.

"And you made your choice too." she went on. "You're a better cat than Ivypaw. You proved that your Clan and your family mean more to you than…Glory and power."

Crouchpaw dropped his gaze to the ground. "I'm sorry, Mythsong." he murmured. "Sparklepool always says it's your fault that everyone left. I guess…I let my anger get the better of me."

Mythsong couldn't help but smile. "You and I are more alike than you might think." she purred, licking his head affectionately. "Come on, let's finish up hunting."

_OoOoOoOoO_

They trotted back into camp, feeling pleased with themselves and their jaws laden with prey. Dropping her prey onto the fresh-kill pile, Mythsong dismissed Crouchpaw and looked around for Wiseowl. She spotted the brown warrior padding into camp with the white apprentice Icepaw at his side.

"There you are!" Emberstar stormed across the camp, stopping only when she was nose to nose with Wiseowl. To his credit the brown tom did not even flinch.

"Greetings, Emberstar." Wiseowl mewed, his expression unperturbed by the hatred coming from Emberstar in waves. "I took Icepaw out for an assessment while you were otherwise occupied. He is very talented; with thanks to your guidance I'm sure."

"Don't you try to charm me." the ginger she-cat spat, lashing her tail. "Did _I _say you could take my apprentice? No! Is ThunderClan so pathetically short on apprentices that you would take one of ShadowClan's?"

Grassfur stepped up beside Wiseowl, giving Emberstar a warning look. "I would not be talking about being short on cats if I were you." he hissed. "ThunderClan saved ShadowClan from destruction. You should be grateful."

"Just don't talk to me!" Emberstar screamed in his face. "Icepaw, go check the elders for ticks. Show ThunderClan how _grateful_ you are!" Then she turned on her heel and stormed towards the medicine den.

Rather than looking angry, as he had every right to be, Wiseowl looked worried. "She was so happy at the last Gathering, before she was deputy." he told Mythsong, frowning as he spoke. "What happened to her?"

Mythsong shook her head. "You don't want to know."

"Whatever it is, it doesn't give her the right to treat her apprentice like that." Grassfur grumbled. "I'm going to go tell him he can go back to the den to rest. I'll take care of the elders." The pale ginger tom trotted off to do so.

"So how did hunting with Crouchpaw go?" Wiseowl promptly changed the subject.

"Oh. Good. We bonded."

"Good to hear. He's been pretty aloof since the whole GhostClan thing started."

"I can understand that." Mythsong looked away, unable to meet his kind green eyes. Somehow she felt she didn't deserve kindness. Maybe it _was _her fault Ghoststar hadn't been happy in ThunderClan. Maybe—

"Hey, come on." Wiseowl nudged her playfully. "What did I say about pity-parties? Buck up, champ."

"Sorry." Mythsong forced a smile. "I…Think I'll go check on Gustflight."

"Okay. See you later."

She didn't get the chance to go anywhere before a bloody cat ran into the clearing. It was Scalepaw of RiverClan.

"Help!" he screeched desperately. "GhostClan is attacking RiverClan!"

**Meh I tried to drag that out longer than it wanted to be dragged. Oh well.**

**Please read and review dat shiz.**


	19. Chapter Seventeen

**Chapter Seventeen**

It was a familiar scene.

"Here Scalepaw, don't try to move too much." Featherglow was at his side in a flash, already stretching cobwebs over his various wounds. Vaguely Mythsong wondered how the medicine cat seemed to know the name of every cat in the forest.

Blackfire was standing by the camp's entrance, kneading her claws into the ground. "Falconstar, we have to go help!" she yowled, tail twitching anxiously. "They can't take RiverClan as well."

"You'll never get there in time." It was Strippedfur, the jovial old elder who spoke so grimly. "The fastest way to RiverClan is through ShadowClan's territory, but they're GhostClan now."

"So we'd have to go all the way around, through WindClan." Grassfur furrowed his brow, thinking hard. "It could be all over by the time we get there."

"We can't just do nothing!" Blackfire was livid, her amber eyes blazing. "If they take over another Clan, we'll be powerless to stop them."

"StarClan decreed that there will always be four Clans in the forest." Featherglow murmured, not looking up from where she was treating the barely-conscious Scalepaw. "If RiverClan falls there will be three. And StarClan will not be happy."

"There is something we can do." Mythsong said suddenly. All eyes turned to her, and it took a moment for her to realize it was her who had spoken. Swallowing hard, she explained, "We can attack ShadowCl—GhostClan's camp while they're away. They won't have many warriors left at camp. So we can use this chance to rescue the prisoners they're still keeping."

Emberstar's face lit up suddenly. "Yes! We can deal them a hard blow, and rescue the cats who are still held captive!" She looked expectantly at Falconstar.

The leader was sitting stone-still in the middle of the clearing. He had not said a word since coming down from his den when Scalepaw raced in. Mythsong could see his mind working furiously behind his concerned blue eyes. Falconstar always did what he thought was best for his Clan, but was also the first to lend a paw to another Clan in need. So what to do now? They could rush to RiverClan's aid and risk getting there too late and putting their warriors in danger, or they could stick to their own agenda and rescue Magicnight.

"Mtyhsong, Wiseowl, Grassfur and Crouchpaw." the leader announced finally. "You're coming with me. We're attacking GhostClan's camp."

"Cragtooth and I are coming too." Emberstar growled. Her green eyes dared any cat to tell her otherwise.

Mythsong's paws tingled as Falconstar led the group out of camp, setting a brisk pace through the forest. Would Ghoststar be back at camp, or out attacking RiverClan? Something told her he would never pass up a chance to be part of a battle. She glanced sideways at Emberstar, whose tail was lashing behind her as she trotted alongside Cragtooth. Was she wondering if Hurricaneforce would be guarding the camp?

Falconstar didn't bother leading them around close to the lake. With this big a group, there was no point in hiding. They headed straight for the camp, Emberstar taking the lead as they ventured deeper in to what was formerly ShadowClan's land. Just outside of the camp they paused, crouching in the undergrowth.

"What do you smell, Mythsong?" Falconstar's voice in her ear startled her.

Taking a deep breath to settle her nerves, Mythsong concentrated on the camp. She sorted through the scents, trying to find the most recent. Just inside the entrance Fargaze was pacing, presumably restless at being left behind to guard the camp. Rainfall and Forgottensong, formerly of ShadowClan, were also waiting in the camp. Straining her ears, Mythsong could just make out the sounds of them talking in hushed voices.

"There are three warriors in the camp." the golden she-cat hissed. "And…Two apprentices. There's one cat in the nursery—"

"Whitebark." Emberstar breathed.

"—And Magicnight is in a den with Dancestep."

"Good work, Mythsong." Falconstar purred. Mythsong had one of the best noses in the Clan, second only to Magicnight.

"This should be easy." Crouchpaw looked excited, rather than anxious like his mentor. The apprentice flashed Mythsong a grin.

"Don't count your prey before it's caught." Cragtooth rumbled.

Falconstar nodded. "Everyone be careful. If I give the order to retreat, _do as you're told._" His eyes locked with Emberstar's. The ginger she-cat looked away haughtily. "Enough talk. Attack!"

Mythsong pounded through the tunnel into the camp, Wiseowl streaming at her side. She flung herself at the first cat she saw: Fargaze. The gray she-cat let out a shriek of fury and met Mythsong's attack with lashing claws. Twisting away, Mythsong kicked out with her hind legs, feeling them connect with Fargaze's chest. The winded she-cat stumbled back and Mythsong took the chance to pin her down.

"ThunderClan coward!" Fargaze spat, writhing violently under Mythsong's claws.

Mythsong bared her teeth and dragged her hind legs through Fargaze's belly fur. The gray cat screamed and aimed a powerful kick into Mythsong's belly, throwing her off. Now it was Mythsong who was pinned, with Fargaze snapping at her throat and clawing her belly. Suddenly the weight was lifted and she looked around to see Crouchpaw wrestling the former ThunderClan cat to the ground.

Convinced that the tall apprentice could handle Fargaze, Mythsong looked around for another opponent. She found one when someone landed on her back and dug their teeth into her scruff. Instantly Mythsong dropped into a roll, crushing the other cat beneath her. Pinning her down, Mythsong recognized Ivypaw.

The she-cat spat defiantly, squirming out from under Mythsong's claws when she loosened her grip. "You idiot!" Ivypaw sneered. "You think you can afford to go easy on me? I'll rip your throat out!"

Anger raged in Mythsong's belly. This apprentice had no remorse for the pain she caused Crouchpaw and the rest of her family. Shrieking, Mythsong launched herself at Ivypaw, aiming a powerful blow at her cheek. Ivypaw ducked out of the way and slipped between Mythsong's paws, wriggling underneath her and ramming her head into her stomach.

Mythsong gritted her teeth against the pain and brought all her weight down on the apprentice, smothering Ivypaw beneath her. She ignored the claws piercing her legs and belly like bramble thorns. Eventually the apprentice clawed her way out from under the larger cat and streaked away into the bushes.

"ThunderClan, retreat!" Mythsong looked around to see Falconstar supporting a heavily pregnant black and white queen. Magicnight prowled at his other side, her pelt unkempt but eyes lit with the fire of battle. Nearby, Emberstar was nudging Dancestep along towards the camp exit.

Someone shoved her hard, forcing her to stumble forward. "Come on!" Grassfur snarled, pushing her through the tunnel. Once outside the group made a painfully slow retreat, only able to move as fast as Whitebark could. Every step the queen wobbled, her face screwed up in pain.

"Come on, you can make it." Falconstar soothed, helping her along gently.

"This is no good." Dancestep fretted, buzzing around the queen like an agitated bumble bee. "The kits are on their way. We'll never make it back to camp before she has them."

"It's just a little farther to the border!" Emberstar's voice wavered. "Can't they hold on?"

Whitebark shook her head. "I…I can't go any farther…StarClan wants these kits to come now…" she huffed, coming to a sudden stop and falling over on her side. Her breathing became rapid and shallow as contractions rippled over her swollen belly.

"Stay calm, Whitebark." Cragtooth stood over her protectively, smoothing her fur with his tongue. "Our kits will be beautiful, just like you."

Dancestep pressed his paws gently into her stomach. "The first one is on its way. Get ready to push when I say so, alright?"

Whitebark nodded.

"Push!"

Whitebark strained herself, digging her claws into the ground and gritting her teeth. After what seemed like an eternity a small dark kit slithered out onto the pine needles coating the ground. Dancestep quickly nipped open the birth sac and dropped the kit at Cragtooth's paws. The deputy started to lick it vigorously. Finally the kit started to wail.

"A healthy she-kit." Falconstar purred, gazing at the kit with all the tenderness of a father. Mythsong wondered if he was remembering when she was born.

"Don't stop licking her, Cragtooth." Dancestep ordered. "Another is on its way."

Mythsong's ears picked up the cracking of a twig and she looked around in alarm. For a moment, she had forgotten the situation they were in. As Whitebark fought to deliver a second kit, someone was approaching them.

A pale ginger head poked out from behind a tree, a bundle of herbs clutched in her jaws. It was Sparrowflight, GhostClan's medicine cat and Dancestep's former apprentice. Ignoring Mythsong's hostile glare, the young she-cat padded over to Dancestep and dropped the herbs at his paws.

"I brought poppy seeds, borage, thyme and watermint just in case." she mewed, opening the broad folded leaves wrapped around the herbs.

Dancestep nodded, not looking up from Whitebark. "Good. Don't give her anything just yet. Not until the last kit is out." As he spoke a second kit was born. This one he gave to Emberstar, who after a minute's hesitation began licking the tomkit dry.

A third kit came quickly after, followed by a fourth. One Dancestep passed off to Falconstar, and the last he started licking himself.

"Four kits." Whitebark breathed, nudging the first of the four into the crook of her belly to nurse.

"Four future ShadowClan warriors." Emberstar purred, dropping the tomkit she had licked clean at his mother's belly.

"Eat this." Dancestep pushed a few hairy borage leaves to Whitebark. "What will their names be?"

Whitebark chewed the leaves and swallowed, watching her kits through lidded yellow eyes. "This will be Amberkit." she mewed, touching the firstborn kit, the she-kit with chocolate tabby fur like her father. "This is Daisykit," a white and gray she-kit, "Blizzardkit and Willowkit." A pure white tomkit and a smoky gray she-kit.

"They are strong kits." Falconstar nuzzled Willowkit, pushing her a little closer to her mother.

Emberstar nodded, smiling a real smile for the first time since she had come to ThunderClan. Her eyes flickered to Sparrowflight and her smile faded, replaced by a scowl. "What are _you_ doing here?"

"Helping deliver kits." the medicine cat replied matter-of-factly. "I'm a medicine cat. I help any cat in need."

"Medicine cats are not bound by borders." Dancestep reminded his leader.

Emberstar gave an angry flick of her tail. "Well we don't need you anymore. Go back to your Clan."

Sparrowflight met the leader's eyes defiantly for a minute. Then she nodded and stalked off into the forest, her head held high.

"We need to get back to camp." Cragtooth nudged his mate to her paws. "GhostClan could return any minute now, and they'll come after us." He stooped to pick up Amberkit in his jaws.

Falconstar nodded and snatched up Blizzardkit, trotting back towards the border. Emberstar picked up tiny Willowkit and Mythsong took Daisykit. The kit whimpered, swinging precariously by the scruff. _She's so small._ Mythsong thought, trying to keep her head still so as not to shake the kit too much. _Is this really how Ghoststar, Racepaw and I looked when we were born?_

StarClan seemed to smile on them that night and they made it back to camp without incident. After helping Whitebark get settled in the nursery with Gustflight, the cats gathered around Falconstar where he sat with his head bowed in the middle of the clearing.

"Cats of ThunderClan and ShadowClan," His voice echoed off the walls of the rocky cliff face behind him. "Today we rescued our cats from the claws of GhostClan, and witnessed the miracle of four new kits, born to ShadowClan." He paused while the clearing echoed with triumphant cries. "But the price was a great one. There is no doubt in my mind that RiverClan has fallen to GhostClan. We have won a small victory today, but our enemy has won a greater one.

"Tomorrow is another day. Tomorrow myself and Featherglow will travel to WindClan." Falconstar announced, looking over to where the medicine cat was treating Magicnight's wounds. "We will ask for Oakstar's help to defeat GhostClan. Though we are smaller, together ThunderClan and WindClan will drive GhostClan out of RiverClan and ShadowClan's land. And, StarClan willing, we will destroy GhostClan once and for all."

The yowls of approval sent a shiver down Mythsong's spine. Every cat here was hungry for GhostClan's demise. They were sure that they could bring down the powerful Clan, and its leader.

But Ghoststar was too smart for that. In Mythsong's mind, he was unstoppable. He always had been.

**S'been a couple days, I know. I was on a trip with the music department at my school, having a blast. :3 Now I'm back, and I'll get to writing more of this story. I think I have up to chapter 20 finished, so I'll try to upload them soonish.**

**Please read and review.**


	20. Chapter Eighteen

**Chapter Eighteen**

It was hard to keep from smiling. A cat with less self-control than Ghoststar possibly would have broken out into song. Despite the loss of most of their ShadowClan prisoners, GhostClan had managed to easily crush RiverClan. Crescentstar and Runningstorm were dead, Cloudfur was their prisoner, several RiverClan cats had joined GhostClan, and the rest were prisoners, or dead. This time Rushclaw the pregnant queen even decided to join, and look after the young kits of Badgerface, who had refused to join GhostClan with her mate.

Ghoststar felt on top of the world.

He and his Clan were heading back to their camp in ShadowClan's former territory, prisoners in tow. It had been decided that staying there would make more sense than moving into the RiverClan camp. It was more in the middle of their exceptionally large territory, and in a spot they could keep a better eye on ThunderClan. Plus it was dryer.

His smile faded the moment he entered the camp.

"What the hell happened here?"

It was Fargaze who answered, from where she was getting her wounds dressed by Sparrowflight. "ThunderClan attacked." she said shortly. "They took the prisoners we had left and made a run for it."

"And you didn't go after them." Ghoststar hissed through gritted teeth.

"We did our best!" Rainfall yowled indignantly. "After they attacked we were too tired to go after them! Sparrowflight ran to find them, but she couldn't catch them either."

Sparrowflight did not look up at him; she was concentrating fully on plastering cobwebs and leaf pulp over the deep claw marks on Fargaze's belly. Though she was unscathed, she looked exhausted.

Ghoststar pulled his lip up in a snarl. "At least one of you is pulling your weight around here." With an angry whip of his tail, he stalked away into his den. Just as they won RiverClan, they lost what they had left of ShadowClan. If he were to venture a guess, he would say Emberlight had gotten her nine lives already. That was just perfect.

_We won't lose RiverClan like that._ He scraped his claws against the rocky floor of the leader's den. They left white marks on the floor, crossing a stain of Fablestar's blood that he had never bothered to clean up. _They may have taken our prisoners, but we can always take more. We're stronger than them. We outnumber them. Once we take WindClan—_

"Ghoststar?" He jerked his head around to see Dawnflash standing in the door of his den. At his signal she stepped in and settled down at his side, grooming his ruffled fur. Her touch soothed him, and eventually he relaxed and set his head down on his paws.

Dawnflash paused in the rhythmic stroking of his fur to say, "Ghoststar, I need to tell you something."

"What?" Ghoststar grunted, not looking around at her. He wasn't in the mood for one of her 'we need to talk' moments. Talking was all she ever wanted to do.

The creamy she-cat pulled away to look him in the eye. "I'm pregnant, Ghoststar."

He was caught fully off guard by the announcement. Ghoststar's mouth dropped open, all composure gone. After a moment he swallowed hard and mewed, "Th-That's great news!" And it was. Any kits of his would grow to be the strongest warriors in the forest. With Slashwind almost ready to enter the nursery and the RiverClan queen who had joined, GhostClan would soon be full of kits.

A smile broke across Dawnflash's face. "Yes, it is. Our kits will be the most beautiful kits in the forest." Purring, she rested her muzzle on top of his head gingerly.

"No, that's completely wrong. You look like a lopsided badger." Ghoststar growled. He shoved Bouncepaw's rump down with one paw. "Keep your hindquarters down. Do you want every mouse in the forest to see you coming?"

"Sorry." the young she-cat breathed, her limbs shaking as she readjusted her weight. "I-Is this any better?" Bouncepaw crept forward a few steps in her hunter's crouch, low to the ground with her tail close to her body the way Ghoststar showed her.

Still, Ghoststar wasn't impressed. "It's acceptable."

Looking relieved Bouncepaw relaxed and sat down, trying to catch her breath. Ghoststar gave her a moment to compose herself before he leaped at her and pinned her down. "Yowch! What was that for!" the apprentice shrieked, writhing underneath his paws.

Grinning with satisfaction, Ghoststar unsheathed his claws and let them sink into her shoulders. Bouncepaw yowled in pain, thrashing around underneath him. After a few minutes her struggles began to bore him, and Ghoststar let her get up.

"You have to be ready for anything." the silver tom crooned, licking blood from his claws while Bouncepaw glared at him. "You want to be the best warrior in the forest, don't you?"

Bouncepaw hesitated. "Yeah."

"Then prove it." With claws unsheathed he lunged at her, lashing out to strike her across the face. She fell back with a scream as blood welled from her cheek, forming three parallel lines standing out scarlet against her dappled fur. This time Ghoststar didn't give her time to get up; he came at her again, this time sinking her teeth into her shoulder.

A heavy blow landed on his head and he released his grip. As he blinked stars from his vision Bouncepaw tackled him and grabbed him by the scruff, trying to fling him away. But Ghoststar was a lot larger than his apprentice, and he easily swatted her aside.

"You'll have to unsheathe your claws if you ever want to beat me." Ghoststar hissed as he sank his own claws into her shoulders and dragged her to the ground. Before he could pin her she twisted away and kicked out frantically with her hind lings, narrowly missing his nose by an inch. _Now that's more like it._ Ghoststar thought with a grin.

This time when he lunged for her she met him head on, colliding with him and grabbing his shoulder in her teeth. The force of the collision knocked the wind out of her though, and as soon as she landed a blow on him Bouncepaw had fallen to the ground. Immediately Ghoststar took the chance to pin her.

Bouncepaw was wheezing, her sides heaving as if every breath was a labor. Any other Clan would have said she was much too young for this sort of training. Any other Clan would be wrong. Though she needed a lot of…encouragement, Ghoststar could see Bouncepaw would be a great warrior one day.

But he wasn't through with her yet. "Are you tired?" Ghoststar asked sweetly, sheathing his claws but not letting her up.

Bouncepaw nodded, breathing to hard to speak.

"That's a shame." He moved on of his paws to her throat and pressed ever so gently. Bouncepaw's eyes widened and she gasped in pain, struggling to reach him with her stubby legs. An immense feeling of satisfaction swept over him and he pressed harder. Under him Bouncepaw started to choke, her struggles growing weaker…

"What are you doing, Ghoststar?" The voice of Ambereye made him jump off of his apprentice. Bouncepaw gasped and rolled over, coughing violently. The deputy was looking at him with mild suspicion in her gaze, as though she knew what he was doing but wanted to hear it from him.

Ghoststar put on his most charming smile. "Training with Bouncepaw, of course." he purred innocently, gesturing to his battered apprentice. "She's had a bit of a mishap though; I don't think she's feeling too well. Would you take her to Sparrowflight for me?"

"I'm…Fine…" Bouncepaw gasped between bouts of coughing.

Ambereye gave the apprentice a disgusted look. "Clearly you're not. Come on." She nudged the young she-cat with one paw as though Boncepaw had something horribly contagious.

Once they were gone Ghoststar let his composure slip and his serene smile became a twisted sneer. At only four and a half moons old, Bouncepaw had held her own against a fully grown warrior for at least a few minutes, before she was pinned. With a few moons of training, she could easily surpass him. Then he would just have to get rid of Ambereye, and set Bouncepaw up to succeed him…

Yes, it was all going according to plan. Once the whole forest was under his control, he could dispose of any cat he wanted, and set up those loyal to him to follow his every whim. GhostClan would be the strongest Clan to ever exist.

**I was inspired the other day, my friends. Checking my email on a whim, I find a review for this story from ****Before the Winter's Dawn****. I thought to myself, goddammit, I should finish what I started! So here I am, at my brand-spanking new laptop, furiously writing the final chapters to this story. **

**Luckily I have a bit of a buffer (up to chapter 20 is finished), so as long as I don't forget I should be able to update regularly.**

**So thank you kind reviewer, and let's get this done. B]**

**Please read and review.**


	21. Chapter Nineteen

**Chapter Nineteen**

Emberstar paced the camp with deliberate steps, her tail lashing from side to side. From below Highledge Cragtooth and Dancestep followed her progress, perfectly still except for the movement of their eyes. Around the clearing the other cats of ThunderClan and ShadowClan sat, unnaturally silent.

"I hate all this waiting around." Magicnight growled, causing Mythsong to jump. It wasn't until her friend spoke that Mythsong noticed how high-strung she was. Everyone was. Magicnight however looked the worst out of all the gathered cats; she was almost entirely swathed in cobwebs and saturated with mashed herbs. GhostClan had really done a number on her.

It was Grassfur who grunted in response. "Falconstar will be back. There's no reason he wouldn't come back."

"I know that!" Magicnight snapped. "I just hate sitting here doing nothing. I'm itching to sink my claws into those traitors' faces and…And…" She left it hanging like that, grinding her teeth in frustration.

Wiseowl shifted his weight uneasily. "It bothers me to think of what GhostClan is doing right now." he murmured. "They could be heading for us as we speak, ready to attack."

"No." Mythsong shook her head. "Ghoststar will want to save us for last. He won't come for ThunderClan until he's taken all the other Clans."

Magicnight gave her a suspicious look. "How do you know that?"

How did she know that? Mythsong wasn't entirely sure that she did. Although she tried to tell herself he was a completely different cat now, Mythsong knew in her heart that she could still tell just what Ghoststar was thinking. She knew his motives and how his mind worked from there. To everyone else it was a mystery, something just out of the blue that had shaken the Clan to its core. But the more she thought about it, the more Mythsong knew she should have seen this coming.

Before she could answer though, Mythsong spotted Emberstar stop dead in her tracks, staring at the entrance to camp. A moment later a familiar golden tom padded in, flanked by the tortoiseshell medicine cat.

"Well?" Emberstar demanded, marching over to Falconstar, eyes blazing.

Falconstar looked exhausted, and he didn't meet her gaze. For the first time Mythsong realized how old he must be; he had not been a young cat when she was born, and he was already leader by then. The many moons of leading the Clan seemed to finally be taking their toll, and Mythsong did not envy the decisions he had to make.

"Oakstar wants to help, but he asks that we wait." Falconstar croaked, blinking at the ground and avoiding the stares of the cats around him. "He wants to see what Ghoststar will have to say for himself at the next Gathering."

Cragtooth snorted. "The coward just doesn't want to be involved. GhostClan hasn't harmed any of his warriors yet."

The ThunderClan leader shook his head. "That may be true. But I can't force him to put his warrior's lives in danger for a war that doesn't affect him."

War. The word set Mythsong's teeth on edge. So this was officially a war, was it? The war with GhostClan.

"And what if GhostClan attacks us before the next Gathering?" Flashinglight shoved her way into the center of the circle of cats around Falconstar. "Would Oakstar come to help us, or watch GhostClan destroy ThunderClan as well?"

"He won't come after ThunderClan!" She hadn't meant to shout it, but once the words were out all eyes were on Mythsong. Some of them more hostile than others. Mythsong swallowed hard. "Ghoststar wants to make ThunderClan suffer. He wants to make us watch everything fall around us, then choke us out when we have no one else to help us."

Silence met her words. She saw Sparklepool and Dewdrop exchange knowing looks, and Flashinglight's fur was prickling angrily.

"If that's the case," Blackfire's voice broke through the quiet. "Then we should be on the lookout to help WindClan. That's where GhostClan will strike next."

"Oakstar can take care of his own warriors." Emberstar snapped, not taking her eyes off of Mythsong though she seemed to be addressing Falconstar. "We should be prepared to defend this camp just in case our… Predictions turn out to be incorrect.

Mythsong's pelt prickled in irritation but she did not rise to Emberstar's thinly-veiled sarcasm. She knew she was right; it didn't matter if anyone else believed her. ThunderClan was safe for the time being.

"We can't do anything until Oakstar agrees to help." Falconstar stated, his voice level as he stepped between Emberstar and Mythsong. "We will have to wait until the next Gathering."

Emberstar held his gaze for a moment before turning away. She beckoned with her tail for Cragtooth to follow. The ShadowClan deputy gave Falconstar a sympathetic look before padding after his leader.

Slowly the rest of the gathered cats began to break up, whispering amongst themselves as they disappeared into their respective dens. In a few moments only Mythsong, Wiseowl, Blackfire and Falconstar remained in the clearing. The latter had not moved since Emberstar left, staring into the distance as though he didn't notice that anyone was still with him.

"Falconstar, do you want any patrols taken out?" the deputy asked, raising a paw uncertainly in his direction.

Falconstar did not answer right away. "No, thank you, Blackfire. You may go." Hesitantly Blackfire turned and padded away into the warrior's den as well. Then there were the three of them, standing in silence for what seemed like a very long time. Finally Flaconstar mewed, "You and Ghoststar were always very close, Mythsong."

Mythsong blinked. "Yes. We were… Very good friends, as well as siblings."

"Would you say you knew him best?" Falconstar still did not turn to face her as he spoke.

"No. Racepaw did." she admitted. Though she and Ghoststar had spent much of their time together growing up, it was Racepaw who's side he never left. The two had been inseparable. When all three couldn't be together, Ghoststar would find a way to stay with Racepaw.

Falconstar nodded slowly. "Watch yourself, Mythsong. Don't let him take you over." With that, he padded away and vanished into the nursery where Gustflight was resting.

Someone's tail on her shoulder made Mythsong jump; she had forgotten Wiseowl was still there. His green eyes were dark with concern as he looked her up and down. "Do you want to talk about it?" he asked quietly, as if afraid someone would overhear.

"Not really."

"I know he was your brother." the tom pressed on anyway. "Growing up, my brother Fiercehawk and I were very close."

Mythsong felt herself flush with embarrassment. "I didn't know you had a brother."

"I wouldn't expect you to." Wiseowl shrugged with a slight chuckle. "He died when you were very young. Though, you can tell Falconstar had fun while naming us. He's quite find of birds of prey, your father." He laughed again at his own corny jokes.

He sobered up quickly. "But when we were apprentices, sometimes it seemed like I could tell what he was thinking. I always knew when he was upset or having a bad day. And he was always there to cheer me up at just the right time."

"What happened?" Mythsong asked, almost afraid to find out. His story seemed all too familiar.

Wiseowl looked away. "Fiercehawk became a warrior before me. After he got his name he… Changed." Pause. "He started hanging out with the senior warriors and ignoring me. I think he was embarrassed, because I was still an apprentice. He didn't want me hanging around with him and his cool new warrior friends, even if I was his brother."

"I'm sorry." It wasn't the right thing to say at all, but it was all Mythsong could think of. She was really quite pathetic when it came to comforting another cat. Maybe she should have nuzzled him or something, but she just stood by awkwardly instead.

He didn't seem to need sympathy though, as he just shrugged his shoulders again. "Don't be; his pride ended up getting him killed in the end. Fiercehawk and his buddies went out to patrol one day. I asked if I could come, but he said they didn't need an apprentice tagging along and left without me. The patrol came back without him.

"They'd come across a very angry dog in the woods. His friends wanted to go back for help but Fiercehawk was convinced he could take it on by himself. He wanted to show off for his senior warrior friends and prove he was strong enough. Well… He wasn't." Wiseowl had taken on a faraway look, gazing up at the cloudy sky overhead. "It was pretty disgraceful if you ask me. I try not to think about it."

"I'm sorry." Mythsong said again, feeling like an idiot. Why was he telling her this? Just to make her feel bad for him? She wasn't sure what to say.

Wiseowl grinned sheepishly. "Sorry, that was probably more than you wanted to hear." He flicked her with his tail. "I'm just trying to say, cats can change and do things you think they wouldn't. And even if they're family…" Another pause. "Well, even family can do stupid things. Things that make them too stupid to really call family anymore.

Mythsong blinked uncertainly.

"Just… Keep that in mind." the tom started to head towards the warrior's den. "And don't let him get to you."

She was suddenly very alone in the ThunderClan camp, standing on shaky ground under the thunderclouds pooling overhead. So far, the weather didn't look good for the upcoming Gathering in just two days. _Oh StarClan…_ Mythsong though, staring up at the roiling sky. _What do you have in store for me?_

The clouds had not cleared up by the time Falconstar was leading his Clan to the Gathering. Thunder rumbled ominously in the distance, telling that a great storm was not too far off. Even so, ThunderClan and ShadowClan padded resolutely through the sparse undergrowth that dotted WindClan's territory. They would see what Ghoststar had to say before taking any more chances.

"What if he doesn't even show up?" Mythsong heard Flashinglight whisper to Sparklepool. "Maybe he's turned his back on StarClan and can't be bothered to come to a Gathering."

Sparklepool curled her lip. "Why don't you ask Mythsong? She knows everything he does, before he does it." The two she-cats shot hostile glares back at Mythsong, their tails lashing. The golden warrior tried to subtly slip behind Wiseowl to escape their gaze.

"Hoy, Oakstar!" Falconstar's sudden call startled Mythsong. The WindClan leader was racing towards them, his deputy, Rustfur and several other warriors streaming out behind him. He slowed to a stop as he approached Falconstar and Emberstar.

"Greetings, ThunderClan, ShadowClan." Oakstar dipped his head, eying the mingled cats of two Clans skeptically. "I got your message the other day, about Ghoststar's plans. I left most of my cats back at camp just in case."

Cragtooth glanced nervously up at the sky. "Would Ghoststar be so bold as to launch an attack at a Gathering?"

"Ghoststar could do anything." Emberstar growled, glancing back at Mythsong. "We have to be prepared for the unexpected."

"As we have tried to be." Falconstar sighed. "Come on, we mustn't be late."

The three Clans made their way together to the island and across the slippery tree bridge. But despite their fears of making GhostClan wait, the island was deserted when they got there. A light rain began to soak the assembled cats, punctuated by a ominously close roll of thunder.

"Maybe he really won't show up…" Wiseowl hissed from where he crouched under a small bush. He beckoned with his tail and Mythsong crawled in next to him. The warmth of his body chased away the harsh chill of the rain and wind and she relaxed for the first time since leaving camp. She had just closed her eyes and started to doze off when Emberstar's sharp words snapped her out of her trance.

"This is idiotic." The ginger she-cat's tail lashed in agitation. "He's clearly not going to show up. There's no point in standing out here in the rain any longer. Come on, ShadowClan." Without waiting for Falconstar's permission, she gathered her cats and left for ThunderClan camp.

Oakstar watched her leave with a look of fascination on his face. "Perhaps she is right, Falconstar. Ghoststar seems to have abandoned StarClan along with the Warrior Code."

A deep sigh escaped the old ThunderClan leader. "Yes, we may as well try to get home before this storm breaks. ThunderClan! We're leaving as well." He jumped down from the perch he had taken in the Great Oak and led the way across the tree bridge again. Oakstar followed suit, keeping his warriors close by for warmth.

They caught up with Emberstar's patrol halfway through WindClan's territory. Her fiery pelt was easy to pick up even though the strengthening rain. She nodded curtly as Falconstar and Oakstar joined her at the front of the group, trying to look strong though her fur was plastered to her thin frame.

As they approached the border Mythsong stopped very suddenly. Every nerve in her body was on edge, as though she had just been struck by lightening. A great shiver started in her unsheathed claws and moved up her legs until her whole body was trembling.

Something was _wrong._

"Mythsong?" Wiseowl called back to her when he noticed she was no longer at his side. "Falconstar, hold up! Something's wrong with Mythsong."

Her vision suddenly cleared as though the rain had stopped and the sun shone through. She could see the camp as clear as day, where Ghoststar was locked in a heated battle with Blackfire.

"Attack!" Mythsong gasped, her eyes clouding again under the drenching rain. "The camp is under attack!"

**Oh ho ho. It is 4am and I'm not planning on sleeping tonight. So here's the next chapter, and let's see how much I can write tonight!**

**My sleep schedule is so effed up. **

**Please read and review~**


	22. Chapter Twenty

**Chapter Twenty**

The chilly air that blew through the trees hardly penetrated Ghoststar's thick silver pelt, but he felt himself shiver nonetheless. His claws were sunk deep into the ground at the ThunderClan border as he stared unblinkingly into the dark forest. Ambereye sat silently at his right, the perfect picture of calm, while on his left Snakebite paced impatiently.

He would very much liked to have been in WindClan right now, however. Crushing them would have left ThunderClan all alone, with only the stragglers they saved from ShadowClan there to help. And some help they would be. But, his Clan's thirst for revenge against ThunderClan for their attack that rescued the prisoners was greater than even he had anticipated. So though it was outside of his original plan, feeding his Clan's bloodthirsty cats was just as useful in his eyes.

"It's gotta be close to moonhigh by now." Snakebite growled suddenly, breaking the silence and interrupting Ghoststar's thoughts.. "When are they gonna get going already?"

Ghoststar felt a flicker of annoyance towards the dark tabby tom. He resented the whining tone of his voice. "Patience, Snakebite. Ivypaw will return shortly."

Just as he said that, Ghoststar spotted a shadow flitting between the trees, racing towards them through the familiar undergrowth. Ivypaw skidded to a halt in front of her leader, panting slightly.

"They've just left, Ghoststar!" she reported, eyes glittering. "He didn't take a lot of cats, though. Only Sparklepool, Mythsong, Flashinglight and Wiseowl."

Ghoststar's lip curled at the mention of his sister's name. Of course Falconstar would never want Mythsong out of his sight for too long. It seemed as though they were expecting an attack, and the concerned father probably couldn't bring himself to leave his only daughter in harm's way.

"So Blackfire is still in the camp." It was Ambereye who stated the obvious fact. "What of ShadowClan?"

Ivypaw tilted her head, trying to remember. "Only Emberstar and Cragtooth went, I think. That dark brown one is Cragtooth, right? I can't really remember."

"Don't fret, Ivypaw. You've done very well already." Ghoststar purred, causing Ivypaw to beam with pride. "Now then, did you happen to notice your brother somewhere in the camp?"

Her grin faltered. "Um…Yeah? Why?"

Ghoststar smirked. "I believe a warrior's ceremony may be in order after the battle… If you can make your first kill today." Before she could reply the leader turned to the rest of his Clan and called, soft but strong, "GhostClan, we are moving in. You know the plan."

Growls of approval sounded from behind him as Ghoststar began to lead the way through the territory. A light drizzle had started up, growing steadily harder each minute, but it didn't bother the GhostClan leader. In fact, it would make it harder to hear or smell them approaching the camp. It seemed StarClan was smiling on them today.

He found himself relaxing as he moved through the familiar forest, under the trees where he and Racepaw had once played as carefree apprentices. Padding towards the camp, he could almost hear Racepaw's voice in the swishing of ferns as he passed, or the soft thuds of his Clan's pawsteps.

Oh, how times had changed.

All too soon they reached the camp, and Ghoststar nodded to Ambereye. His deputy waved her tail and a large group split off from the rest of his Clan. Ambereye began to lead them around to the top of the ravine, where, as a former ThunderClan cat, she would lead them down the side of the cliff to attack from that side.

Grinning at the thought of his own carefully-crafted plan, Ghoststar signaled his own group. Immediately the cats began to scale the trees that surrounded the camp. Ghoststar himself clawed his way up onto the perfect overhanging branch. Right below him, Grassfur stood guard at the camp entrance, completely unaware of the danger hanging right over his head.

Voicing a loud howl, Ghoststar dropped out of the tree and landed squarely on Grassfur's back. The older cat gave a screech of terror that was quickly cut short by Ghoststar slashing him across the face. He stumbled back, blinded, flailing his paws randomly in an attempt to slash at some piece of Ghoststar. But Ghoststar stepped back and Flowerspot took his place, knocking the ThunderClan warrior over and pinning him down.

Everywhere his cats were dropping out of the trees or down from the side of the cliff face that had once provided protection for the ThunderClan cats. They were horribly outnumbered, even with Gustflight barreling out of the nursery to join the fight and the elders holding their own against a group of GhostClan apprentices. As he watched, Bouncepaw lunged forward with a feral snarl and ripped her teeth into Ticklewhisker's throat. Ghoststar couldn't help but grin.

Something slammed into Ghoststar's side, knocking him away from Grassfur. He rolled and popped back up onto his feet, facing off with Crouchpaw. The apprentice bared his teeth in a wordless snarl, long tail lashing behind him. Snorting derisively, Ghoststar made a short burst forward to sweep Crouchpaw off his feet and pin him down.

"You'll pay for what you did to my family!" the ginger apprentice screeched, wriggling desperately under his enemy's grip.

Though Ghoststar would have loved to teach him a lesson, Crouchpaw was not his target. Impatiently he kicked the tom in the stomach to knock the wind out of him and tossed him to the side. "Go find your sister, Crouchpaw." the GhostClan leader growled warningly. "I'm sure she'd love to see you."

As soon as the words were out of his mouth Ivypaw lunged out from behind him, tackling Crouchpaw and pinning him down in the mud. Smiling to himself, Ghoststar padded away so as not to intrude on their conversation. Soon the sounds of their screeches were swallowed up by the battle and the increasingly heavy rain.

Finally he spotted the cat he was looking for. Under the shadow of the highledge Ambereye was wrestling with Blackfire, trying to pin down the ThunderClan deputy. The black she-cat kicked out powerfully with her hind legs and sent Ambereye sprawling through the mud, but before Blackfire could catch her breath Ghoststar was on top of her.

"Are you ready to die, Blackfire?" he sneered. Sinking his claws into her flesh and throwing her down onto the rain-slicked ground. She wriggled away before he could deal the final blow, twisting under him and raking her claws down his front legs. Ghoststar reared back in pain and fury, ready to come down on her head, but she slammed into his belly and sent him sprawling.

Blackfire spat at him as he stood slowly, her eyes burning. "You're the one who will die here, Ghoststar."

She lunged forward but Ghoststar met her in midair. The two toppled back together, rolling over and over in the mud. Claws flailing, Ghoststar felt himself rip through fir and flesh but could also feel her teeth in his shoulder. _This is idiotic!_ he snarled inwardly, kicking out violently with his back legs. Blackfire gasped as the blow hit her in the stomach and she was knocked back, winded.

Shaking mud from his pelt, Ghoststar stepped daintily over to where Blackfire was hunched, fighting to catch her breath. With one swipe he knocked her on her back and pressed a paw to her windpipe.

"Now then, where were we?" the silver tom rumbled, watching the light in her eyes beginning to dim as she struggled to breathe. "You're going to die, Blackfire. And after you your precious leader will die, and then your Clan will die. GhostClan will consume you."

Blackfire gagged obscenely. "Star…Clan…" she managed to choke out, though her eyes were bulging from the pressure on her neck.

A cruel grin spread over Ghoststar's face. As he watched the lights leave her eyes, he was dimly aware of the fact that around him, the fighting had stopped. He didn't need to stop and see who had won; he knew GhostClan was victorious.

"StarClan smiles upon me, tonight." the silver tom whispered. He unsheathed his claws into her throat, releasing a spurt of blood into his face. Blackfire gave one last pained gurgle before she lay still, glazed eyes staring up at him with frozen hatred.

Ghoststar stepped back, kicking mud over her body. Cheers went up from the gathered GhostClan cats. They were scattered around the clearing, pinning down the few ThunderClan cats who had been left to defend the camp. With Blackfire and the elder Ticklewhisker dead, there were only eight loyal ThunderClan cats left in the clearing. Only three of them were warriors.

"So, ThunderClan, what do you think of the new and improved GhostClan?" Ghoststar crooned, standing triumphantly over Blackfire's corpse. "I can tell you're impressed. I think my father will be as well, once he comes home."

His ears flickered towards a muffled yowl somewhere out in the forest. The pounding rain nearly covered the sounds of cats racing haphazardly towards the camp. Grinning, Ghoststar turned to the entrance to greet them. In a moment Falconstar burst through the opening in the brambles, Emberstar at his side.

"Speak of the devil."

**This one isn't quite as long as I like my chapters to be. *strokes chin* Oh well, here it is.**

**For the record, I have this story completed at this point and only need to remember to upload it. So get ready for the conclusion, coming soon to a fanfiction near you!**


	23. Chapter Twenty One

**Chapter Twenty One**

Falconstar didn't waste any time. He pelted off into the rain, disappearing quickly into the trees on ThunderClan's side of the border. Emberstar quickly followed, her orange tail vanishing into the rain just behind him. The rest of ThunderClan followed suit, while Oakstar only stood there, staring numbly into the spot where they had just disappeared.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Cragtooth shouted, giving the WindClan leader a rough shove. "Get your Clan and come help!" He turned and dashed after his leader and Falconstar.

Oakstar gave a start. "Oh, um, r-right!" he stuttered, turning to Rustfur.

Mythsong didn't stick around any longer. As soon as her head stopped spinning she raced after the rest of her Clan. The rain blinded her and she ran on instinct alone, ignoring the branches whipping at her face as she passed. Her paws knew the way home; they had travelled this path for moons. Soon she could feel Wiseowl's presence beside her, lending her his strength and warmth.

They skidded to a halt at the entrance, gathered with the rest of ThunderClan and ShadowClan behind their leaders. Across the clearing a silver cat faced them, gray-blue eyes glittering above his sneer. Under Ghoststar's claws, Blackfire lay in a crumbled, bloody heap.

"Speak of the devil." the silver tom crooned, stepping over their deputy's body to greet them. "It's been a long time, Falconstar, Mythsong. So _good_ to see you again."

"You'll pay for killing Blackfire!" Flashinglight snarled, pushing in front of Mythsong to clear at Ghoststar. "StarClan won't stand for this, not on the night of the Gathering!"

Ghoststar's laugh sent a chill through Mythsong's bones. "You stupid she-cat, can't you see I've already won?" He gave them a crooked smile. "StarClan approves of GhostClan, why else would they send us ThunderClan and the last of ShadowClan for us to consume all at once?"

Thunder crashed overhead, nearly blotting out Ghoststar's words. But with the rest of his Clan beginning to close in, there was little doubt of his intentions. Despite Mythsong's assurance that Ghoststar would not attack, this was where ThunderClan would have their last stand.

A snarl was rising in Emberstar's throat, but Falconstar didn't give her the chance to speak. "I don't want to fight you, son." ThunderClan's leader said quietly, his eyes downcast. "But if you don't get out of my camp right now, I'll be forced to kill you myself."

"On the contrary, father dear." Ghoststar beckoned one of his warriors with a flick of his tail. Snakebite hurried forward, unceremoniously depositing a dripping kitten in the mud at his leader's feet. Though it was difficult to tell through the rain and the mud, Mythsong recognized it as Rustlekit, one of her baby brothers. The golden kit was shivering uncontrollably, staring up at his older brother with wide blue eyes.

Smirking, Ghoststar unsheathed his claws and placed one carefully on Rustlekit's head. From somewhere across the clearing, Mythsong heard her mother scream. Ghoststar's smile grew. "You're going to surrender, Falconstar, before you watch the rest of your children die."

Falconstar froze in place, rigidly staring at Rustlekit. He did not call the attack, despite Emberstar's murderous gaze on him. Even now, Falconstar could not bring himself to risk the life of one of his children. She could see it; Mythsong could tell her father was about to forfeit the Clan and his own life in order to save Rustlekit.

Well, she wasn't about to let him do that. Leaving no time for someone to stop her, Mythsong sidestepped her leader and launched herself at Ghoststar. Taken by surprise, Ghoststar had no chance to react and she was on top of him in seconds. No longer held back, Emberstar surged forward as well. Soon enough the clearing had erupted into battle.

It didn't take long for Ghoststar to throw her off. He was larger and stronger, and one good kick to the stomach was all it took to send her flying. By the time she had clawed her way out of the mud and back to her feet, her brother's silver pelt had vanished amidst the pouring rain and furiously battling cats.

"Mythsong, look out!" Hearing the warning, Mythsong whipped around in time to see Magicnight barrel into Hurricaneforce, sending him skidding away through the mud. The tortoiseshell warrior, still wrapped in cobwebs from her last encounter with GhostClan, clawed savagely at the tom, driving him back against the cliff.

Before she could help her friend another cat was on her. Claws sank into her shoulders and she twisted away instinctively, her fur ripping as she turned to face Ambereye. Before Mythsong could retaliate the odd-eyed warrior had her teeth sunk deep into her shoulder. Mythsong howled and tried to slash at her attacker, but Ambereye only bit down harder, blood dripping from her muzzle as she dragged Mythsong down.

The grip on her shoulder was released when another cat plowed into Ambereye. To Mythsong's surprise it was Rustfur, WindClan's deputy. Behind her a new wave of cat was flooding into the clearing; WindClan had joined the battle, their fresh warriors beginning to drive back the invaders. Watching in disbelief, she saw Rustfur send Ambereye running, while nearby Scarstripe vanished underneath Icepaw and a WindClan apprentice.

The tides of battle were turning.

Another cat crashed into her and Mythsong readied for battle, but it was not an enemy. Crouchpaw was staring up at her with a dazed look on his face. "I killed Ivypaw." he said dully, apparently ignorant to the other fighting around him.

"Crouchpaw, I— " Mythsong began, hoping to comfort him quickly and get back to fighting.

The apprentice shook his head. "I killed Ivypaw and Wiseowl is missing. Can't find him anywhere, I can't lose him too!" Suddenly he was distraught, kneading the muddy ground with his paws. With his usually bright ginger pelt flattened by rain, he looked very small and vulnerable.

Mythsong gave a short nod. "I'll find him." Without waiting to see the relieved look on Crouchpaw's face, the golden she-cat took off, weaving through the crowds of cats as they splattered Clan blood across the camp. With the rain and so many cats around, it would be impossible to pick up Wiseowl's scent to track him. But Mythsong had other ways of finding her friend.

On top of that, she couldn't help notice that Ghoststar was also nowhere to be seen.

Soon enough she spotted a whole in the camp's barrier with a familiar bit of silver fur caught on the brambles. It seemed that in his haste to escape the battle, Ghoststar had gotten sloppy. And if Wiseowl had happened to notice him leaving… Swallowing hard Mythsong slipped into the tunnel, leaving the cacophony of battle behind.

Once outside the camp, the pouring rain and distant thunder drowned out all other sounds. It was as though just behind her the camp was empty, each cat asleep in their dens. Save for the occasional scream cutting through the night, the forest seemed at peace. Even the rain seemed to be lessening, the storm passing as quickly as it had come.

Following Ghoststar's trail through the soaked forest, it was clear that two cats had come this way. If she found Ghoststar, she would find Wiseowl too. The question was, would Wiseowl be able to hold his own against her brother? Ghoststar was not a cat to be underestimated, that much was excruciatingly clear. Even if she found them, would it be too late?

The rain had slowed to a drizzle by the time Mythsong spotted movement up ahead. Dropping into a crouch, she slid forward through the undergrowth. Whoever it was was crashing through the forest haphazardly, not bothering with any sort of stealth. It was clear that this was not Ghoststar and Wiseowl. However, that probably meant they were GhostClan reinforcements.

With a snarl, Mythsong jumped out of the undergrowth and leapt at the pale blue cat leading the group. Her victim let out a yelp as she was knocked off her feet and pinned.

"Stop! I'm on your side!" the blue she-cat said frantically, struggling under Mythsong's claws.

After a moment, she recognized the cat as Wakestorm of RiverClan. Flattening her ears apologetically, Mythsong stepped off and helped the cat up. "What are you doing here? I thought RiverClan was taken prisoner."

"We were." It was Strongwind who responded. "But GhostClan thought that just leaving two warriors behind would be enough to stop us. We had to kill Duststorm to do it, but he wasn't really one of us anymore anyway."

Mythsong frowned, but she didn't have time to argue with them. If they wanted to join the battle, more power to them. "The camp is that way." she hissed, pointing with her tail before taking off again. Wakestorm called something after her, but she didn't stick around to hear what the RiverClan cats had to say.

A strangled scream tore through her and Mythsong put on an extra bolt of speed. It was Wiseowl, she was sure of it. Any moment she would come upon him with his throat ripped out, sprawled in the mud the way Blackfire had been when they returned to camp. And it would be all her fault, all her fault for not realizing what Ghoststar would do as soon as the camp was left unprotected…

She reached the crest of a small hill, letting out a small cry when she saw the muddied cat sprawled out in the ground, making all her dreams reality. His killer crouched over the body, staring at her with wide emerald green eyes.

"Mythsong?" Wiseowl whispered, the fur on his shoulders beginning to lie flat. "Thank StarClan, I thought you were another GhostClan cat."

Mythsong blinked a few times, examining the cat on the ground. The scene was reversed; Ghoststar was the one with his throat slashed open, bleeding out into the soaked ground. His eyes were wide but glazed, his muzzle twisted in a snarl. Somehow, Wiseowl had killed him.

She sat down heavily, unable to take her eyes off her brother. "That's it… ?" she squeaked, flattening her ears against her head.

"Yeah… That's it."

Part of her was disappointed. Ever since Racepaw had appeared to her in a dream and gave her the prophecy, Mythsong had known that she would have to be the one to kill Ghoststar. But it was not her at all. Despite the fact that the most dangerous cat in the forest was dead, she couldn't help the spike of jealousy she felt towards Wiseowl. The feeling scared her, quite frankly, but she couldn't shake it.

Frowning, Wiseowl nudged the corpse. "Maybe he didn't really have all the lives he thought he did." he said with a shrug. "He doesn't seem to be getting up."

"No, he doesn't." Mythsong's voice was colder than she meant it to be, and Wiseowl gave her a startled look.

"Is something wrong Mythso—"

His question was cut short by a scream of terror. Without warning the dead cat at his feet surged upwards, slamming his head into Wiseowl's chest. The brown tom was thrown backwards, hitting a tree trunk with a sickening crack. Seemingly in slow motion, he slid to ground and lay there in a motionless heap.

"Wiseowl!" Mythsong tried to dart around her brother to the older tom's aid but Ghoststar swatted her down with one paw. Falling face first into the mud Ghoststar pinned her there, pushing Mythsong's muzzle down until she could feel herself suffocating.

"Ignorant piece of foxdung." her brother snarled, digging is claws into the back of her head as she scrabbled desperately in the mud. "I didn't want to have to kill you here, Mythsong. Maybe I still held the hope that you would join me once you saw your Clan fall around you."

Another heavy blow sent her sprawling and he pinned her again, pressing his nose to hers so she could feel his hot breath on her neck. "Or maybe I just wanted to see your death drawn out. After this it's clear you deserve a much more painful death." Ghoststar pressed a paw to Mythsong's throat. "But you don't leave me with much choice.

A deafening crash from above startled Ghoststar enough for Mythsong to kick him off. He fell back, winded, framed against the forest in a strange orange glow. Staring past him, Mythsong felt a knot of fear in her belly.

Lightening flashed again overhead as Mythsong watched the forest beginning to burn around them.

**Mm, cliffhangers. **

**To answer a question I received in a review, yes I do plan to continue writing. After this story is finished I have a few others in the making, including a possible sequel to this story. 'Course most of my writing is on the Warrior Cats RPG site I'm part of, though I don't want to advertise too much here. X3**

**Anyway, hope you're all enjoying the story, and leave me a review to tell me what you think!**


	24. Chapter Twenty Two

**Chapter Twenty-Two**

Before she could fully comprehend what was happening, Ghoststar had made a run for it. He flashed passed her, vanishing into the undergrowth behind her. Glancing around frantically, Mythsong decided he could wait.

Instead she ran to Wiseowl's side, nosing him experimentally. His body was still warm, despite his soaked fur. Still, she couldn't tell if he was breathing. The air was quickly filling with smoke, stinging her eyes and nose so it was difficult to examine her friend. With the fire drawing ever closer, she knew she couldn't leave him here. Grunting with the effort, she grabbed Wiseowl by the scruff and hoisted him up, dragging him, inch by inch, towards the lake.

Luckily, Wiseowl was neither a large nor a heavy cat, and the going was smooth down to the lake. Mythsong carefully laid him out near the water, far enough from the trees that, hopefully, the fire would not reach him. Convinced that he would be moderately safe, Mythsong set out yet again to find Ghoststar.

Running blind through the smoky forest, Mythsong could feel her lungs burning in protest. Watery eyes made her nearly blind, and with the scent of the fire clogging her nose scenting out Ghoststar was impossible. On top of that the rain was picking up again, clogging the air with water as well as fire. By now Ghoststar could have made it back to his own territory, where it would be impossible to find him.

As luck would have it, StarClan granted her one last gift. There he was, standing on a rock by the lake, staring at the sky. Another bolt of lightly lanced by just overhead, striking somewhere disturbingly close by. Following his gaze, Mythsong could see that the trees on ShadowClan's side of the border had also been set ablaze by the storm.

"You've got nowhere to go." Mythsong snarled, raising her voice to be heard over the rain and crackling fire. She stopped a few tail lengths from where Ghoststar stood, watching her brother's silhouette against the orange glow of the fire. He seemed to be made of stone, rooted to the spot and unable to answer her.

Finally Ghoststar turned towards her, a wild look in his eyes that she had ever seen before. Slowly, a grin spread across his face. "On the contrary, dear sister!" he said, his voice shrill. He took a step towards her. "I'm right where I want to be! Fire, fire everywhere, and you can't hope to win!"

He launched himself towards her, but she was ready for him. Sidestepping his pounce she clawed at his flank as he slid passed her, scoring bright red lines through his soaked silver fur. Shrieking, Ghoststar turned and lashed out wildly at her muzzle, but in his enraged state his attacks were easy to dodge. Ducking under his claws Mythsong barreled forward, crashing into him head-on and trying to hold him down.

She only had him for a few seconds before he threw her off again, bucking violently to send her flying. Like Wiseowl had before she smashed into a tree, feeling something crack. Dazed, she slid to the ground, seeing nothing but stars before her eyes.

Claws in her back brought her to her senses again and she twisted away instinctively. Her muscles were beginning to burn in protest, but she couldn't stop now. Fueled by adrenaline alone, Mythsong kicked out with all her might at her brother. There was a satisfying grunt of pain when her blow collided with Ghoststar's nose.

He reeled back, blinded for a moment and clawing wildly at the air. Blood was dripping down from his nose, staining his muzzle with fresh blood. Seeing her chance, Mythsong tackled him, slamming her shoulder into his chest. The blow sent him sprawling, and Mythsong pinned him down, digging her claws into his shoulders.

"Any last words, brother?" she hissed, cold hatred gripping her chest as she stared into his eyes.

But Ghoststar was beyond words. Flailing his claws against her, he screeched wordlessly over and over. Mythsong felt a brief stab of pity. It seemed as though her brother's mind had abandoned him upon seeing all his carefully laid plans ruined. He was hardly the same confident, self-assured cat that had split off from ThunderClan only a moon ago.

The feeling passed quickly. She couldn't think of this cat as her brother, or even as another Clan cat anymore. When he abandoned ThunderClan and turned his back on StarClan, he had made it clear they were no longer family. When he threatened to kill one of their baby brothers, he had destroyed the last shred of respect Mythsong had left for him.

With a last snarl, Mythsong drove her teeth into Ghoststar's throat. Her brother's screams were cut off abruptly and he struggled in silence. She tightened her grip on his throat, biting back the urge to gag at the warm, metallic taste. She let the blood flow freely until his blows slowed and ceased. Only then did she release him, stepping back to survey her work.

With a lull in the excitement, the adrenaline high quickly began to fade. Mythsong noticed for the first time just how exhausted she was. The claw marks all over her body burned and she fought for every breath in the thick air. Every inch of her body seemed to be rebelling, protesting even the smallest movements as she shifted her weight. All she wanted was to collapse right there in the mud, come what may.

Of course, that was never an option.

All too soon Ghoststar was pulling himself to his feet again. The deranged look was still present in his eyes, though it was pushed down, subdued. He seemed to have regained control over himself, at least for now.

"Seven lives." he warned, his voice a low rumble. "Can you kill me seven more times?"

Mythsong couldn't bring herself to answer. Of course, he knew the answer already. While his wounds had been fully healed, nothing more than a stain on his neck, she was still feeling each one of hers. He looked as though he had slept for a moon, cracking his neck as he stood and stretched luxuriously. Her muscles were screaming, her consciousness threatening to abandon her with every smoke-filled breath she took.

Ghoststar smirked, his eyes glinting orange as the fire drew closer to them. "You are going to die here, Mythsong. You are going to die right now."

With the last of her strength, Mythsong pulled herself to her feet. Straightening up, she raised her chin defiantly. Though her dry mouth formed no words, the message was clear. Mythsong had no intention of letting Ghoststar get away with all the cats he had hurt, even if it cost her her only life.

"You still don't get it, do you Mythsong?" Ghoststar growled, stalking around her in a wide circle. "I've already won. The forest will burn, along with the last of your precious Clan. And from the ashes GhostClan will rise, stronger than ever. This is the end of the four Clans of the forest."

Mythsong could only glare at him; she didn't trust her mouth to form the words. It was too full of the taste of blood and smoke that she feared opening it would cause it all to spill out. So she only fixed him with her cold stare, her deep blue eyes burrowing into his icy ones.

His crooked smile was quickly replaced by a scowl. "Very well, then. Good bye, Mythsong."

She saw him leap. Steeling herself, she dug in her claws to absorb the attack. He was flying towards her, his claws outstretched, lips pulled back to reveal fangs stained with blood. In one instant he was there, the angel of death, and in the next the world had gone white.

Yowling, Mythsong dropped to the ground, covering her ears with her paws. The image before her was burned into her eyes, blindingly white save for the dark shape of Ghoststar right in the center of it all. His scream was drowned out by the deafening explosion that accompanied the lightning.

Long after the lightning faded Mythsong could still see only white. She stumbled backwards, trying desperately to blink the blindness from her eyes. All she could hear was ringing, all she could see was white. The bright flash of lightening, though it had only lasted a fraction of a second, had apparently done significant damage. Vaguely, some part of her mind registered that she was being pelted with heavy rain drops.

After what seemed like years the blindness passed, though the world seemed strangely dull. The sounds of the rain around her were muted and she thought she felt blood trickling from her ears. The longer she sat there taking inventory of her injuries, the more she noticed. Her pelt was singed, most of the fur on her chest and face was smoking or gone, burned by the bolt of lightning. The strike had left her blind, deaf and burned.

But she was _alive._

Once her vision had cleared to the point that she could walk without wobbling too much, she approached what was left of her brother. Most of his fur had burned away, revealing angry red boils on his skin. His mouth was open in a soundless scream, his eyes white and blank. Despite his seven lives, he was very, very dead. Not even StarClan could heal these wounds, though she had a feeling that they had no intention to.

Feeling bile rising in her throat, Mythsong turned away from the corpse to retch. Her body convulsed violently, emptying what little her stomach held over the charred grass. It was quickly washed cleaned by the rain, sinking harmlessly into the soil. When the spasms finally stopped she simply stood there panting, her sides heaving. The rain felt good on her wounds, washing away the mud and blood that had matted her fur.

_Move._ Was the first thought that entered her mind. Without knowing where she was going, Mythsong forced her legs into action. Slowly she dragged herself through the smoking forest. Sizzling embers scorched her paws but she could barely feel them. The pain was far away, as though it was happening to someone else. She was a stranger in her own body, someone who had simply entered just to observe for a while.

Perhaps the lightning had killed her as well. Was this what it felt like to be dead?

She stumbled when her paws slid over wet pebbles, and she squinted ahead at the lake and the dark shape that lay near it. Wiseowl was still where she left him, spread out peacefully at the edge of the lake. With the rain streaming through his fur, he looked even smaller than usual. Almost like a sleeping apprentice. For a second she thought it was Racepaw, stretched out and ready for a nap. Mythsong shook her head to clear the image, and when she opened her blurry eyes he was Wiseowl again.

The last few shaking steps led her to his side. There, she finally collapsed. Burying her nose in his drenched fur, she could still feel warmth coming from his body. _Alive._ They were both alive. For now, at least. Some miracle had allowed them both to keep their lives where Ghoststar had lost his.

Closing her dull and burning eyes, Mythsong heaved a sigh of relief. It was over, it was all over. For her and Wiseowl, at least. For all she knew the battle was still raging back at camp. But for now, she didn't care. For now all she wanted was to rest forever with Wiseowl's warm body beside her. Letting his sweet scent fill her nostrils, Mythsong soon drifted into a deep sleep.

Racepaw was there, once she closed her eyes, smiling warmly at her. Without a word he stepped towards her, touching his nose gently to her forehead. Heat spread through her body, searing her eyes and ears and the cuts from battle. Once the feeling subsided, he vanished, leaving her to sleep in dreamless peace.


	25. Chapter Twenty Three

**Chapter Twenty-Three**

"Mythsong? Mythsong, wake up."

Slowly Mythsong began to become aware of her surroundings again. She opened her eyes, blinking groggily in the daylight. Her vision had cleared and she could see Wiseowl standing over her, looking concerned. Birds were chattering somewhere overhead, their sounds no longer muffled and overpowered by a ringing in her ears. It appeared StarClan had taken care of her in more ways than one.

She saw Wiseowl's shoulders slump with relief when she raised her head. "Thank StarClan, you're alright. I was afraid you were…" He swallowed hard, looking out over the lake instead of at her.

Smiling softly, the golden she-cat lifted herself to her paws and went to stand beside him. He leaned against her, their damp pelts drawing from the other's warmth. It was nearly sunhigh, but they felt no need to go anywhere just yet.

"So he's really dead, then?" Wiseowl asked after a long moment.

Mythsong nodded. "He was struck by lightning. StarClan made their feelings known."

Another silence stretched between them before Wiseowl finally said, "I was afraid I would lose you."

She cast him a sidelong look, not exactly sure how to respond. "Why?" Mythsong asked, frowning. It sounded like something her father would say, not Wiseowl. Falconstar was anxious and overprotective. Wiseowl had always seemed much more level headed.

The tom flattened his ears in embarrassment. "Because… I care about you, Mythsong." His voice was muffled and he didn't meet her eyes. He seemed a very different cat than the Wiseowl that Mythsong knew.

"… We should get back to camp." Flicking her tail over his shoulder, the golden tabby began to pick her way back through the charred forest. After a moment's hesitation Wiseowl followed her, keeping his eyes down.

Luckily, the damage done to the forest wasn't too bad. The trees were blackened and many of the undergrowth burned, but the fire had not raged for long enough to do permanent damage. She leapt over one newly fallen tree, but it seemed to be one of the only casualties. Among the trees, at least. Her heart tightened at the thought of what they might find back at camp. Although Ghoststar was dead, had the others managed to defeat GhostClan?

It was with the utmost caution that they entered the camp, Wiseowl flanking Mythsong as they slipped through the bramble entrance. The floor of the camp had been churned by the many paws, leaving it rough and difficult to navigate. Across the clearing several motionless forms were laid out in the mud, their fur groomed and ready to find StarClan. Cats crouched near several of them, holding vigil over their fallen Clanmates.

"Mythsong!" She was caught off guard when another cat plowed into her, knocking her off her feet for what seemed like the hundredth time in the last few days. But rather than an enemy she was left staring up into Magicnight's bright green eyes. Well, one of her eyes at least. The other was covered in a thick cobweb bandage.

"We thought you were dead!" her friend purred, butting her head gently against Mythsong's nose. "You vanished during the battle and never came back and we thought you were gone forever!"

Feeling a bit irritated, Mythsong shook the other she-cat off. She wrinkled her nose a bit as some of Magicnight's cobweb bandages left a bit of their sticky residue in her own fur. "We're fine, you don't have to worry." she mewed, forcing a smile. "We lived, which is more than I can say for Ghoststar."

Magicnight's ears perked. "Ghoststar is dead? That's great! I'll go tell Falconstar!" She began to dart away as quickly as she had come, but was blocked by an exasperated Featherglow.

"Honestly, can't you sit still for one minute?" the medicine cat snapped, looking as though she had aged years since the last time Mythsong had seen her. "I told you to sit still until I finished setting Grassfur's leg!"

Magicnight gave her sister a sheepish smile. "Sorry sis, I got a bit excited. I'll be good." Giving Mythsong a _we'll talk later_ look, the calico followed Featherglow back to the group of injured cats gathered around the medicine cats. Grassfur was lying stretched out on the ground, apparently asleep while Featherglow went back to work on his leg.

Nearby Dancestep was draping cobwebs over a nasty looking gash on Rustfur's head, Sparrowflight hovering around him and looking uncomfortable. The young GhostClan medicine cat seemed to have been recruited to assist with treating injuries. Even RiverClan's medicine cat Cloudfur had arrived with the RiverClan prisoners. He was tending to a WindClan warrior's injuries while nearby his apprentice, Glowingpaw, mixed herbs for the healers.

Despite Magicnight's outburst, most of the battle-worn cats seemed too exhausted to acknowledge Mythsong and Wiseowl as they entered. One or two raised their heads to eye the newcomers, then returned to mourning or helping the medicine cats.

At the far edge of the clearing, what was left of GhostClan huddled together in a corner. Ambereye crouched in front of them, glaring around at their captors. Her fur was ragged and bloodied, but her odd eyes glittered coldly from the shadows. Behind her, her Clan looked much less hostile. Many of them appeared to be unconscious, and those who weren't were in worse shape than Ambereye. No one offered to help them, and two WindClan warriors sat close by keeping watch.

Ignoring Ambereye's hostile gaze, Mythsong picked her way through the mud to where the bodies of the dead were laid out, Wiseowl following behind her. Blackfire and Ticklewhisker, the battle's earliest casualties, had been cleaned of any blood that marred their pelts. Next to them Flashinglight lay motionless, her lips pulled back in a final snarl. Leaffall, a WindClan warrior, had been set a bit apart from the ThunderClan cats. Several WindClan cats crouched over him, paying their last respects.

Separated from the Clan cat's dead, GhostClan's casualties were placed with far less care. Snakebite and Hurricaneforce nearly overlapped each other, their bloody paws sunk into the mud. Hurricaneforce looked as if he had been blinded before he was killed; perhaps Emberstar had gotten her revenge. Nearby a cat she recognized as Flutterwing, formerly of WindClan, was crumpled in a heap.

A few tail lengths away, Crouchpaw had apparently dragged the body of Ivypaw away from the other GhostClan cats. Unlike her fallen Clanmates her fur had been carefully groomed, so that she appeared to be sleeping peacefully. Crouchpaw stood over her, keeping a lonely vigil over the sister who had betrayed him and died by his claws.

A soft tap on her shoulder made her jump, but it was only Wiseowl. He jerked his head towards Crouchpaw. "I'm going to stay with him. Go find Falconstar and let him know what happened." the tom whispered, then padded over to comfort his apprentice.

It wasn't exactly difficult to find Falconstar. He was sitting beneath Highledge, looking dazed. He stared vaguely in Blackfire's direction, though his mind seemed to be far away. Mythsong had to give him a gentle nudge to get his attention.

The leader gave a startled jolt, taking a moment to recognize Mythsong. "Mythsong… You're alive?" he murmured as though he couldn't quite believe it.

"Yes, Father." Mythsong forced a smile. "Ghoststar is dead."

"What's this?" Emberstar stalked over, ignoring Dancestep's protests that she should stay still. Her ginger fur was matted with blood and cobwebs, though there was a hint of smugness about the way she carried herself now.

She looked between Falconstar and Mythsong, eyes sharp. "So you really killed Ghoststar all by yourself?"

"Well… No." the golden she-cat stared at her paws. "Wiseowl took one of his lives, and I took another. When he rose again, a bolt of lightning struck him. StarClan… Took all of his lives away in one go."

Falconstar's brow knotted with concern. He examined his daughter carefully, though she didn't seem to have any noticeable injuries on her. Mythsong herself had noticed that while she slept her wounds had healed, leaving nothing but scars behind. Though she had a hunch that Racepaw had something to do with this, she did not mention it to the leaders.

"So, is that the end of GhostClan?" Emberstar asked, shooting a glare towards Ambereye. The ShadowClan leader flexed her claws menacingly.

"I don't know." Falconstar raised his voice, turning towards the cornered GhostClan cats. "Why don't we ask GhostClan?"

Suddenly all eyes were on them. Uncomfortable with being the center of attention, Mythsong backed away from Falconstar and Emberstar, finding herself beside Magicnight instead. Oakstar took her place with the other leaders, staring down GhostClan.

Ambereye stared right back defiantly. "Ask us what? Ask us if we're going to disband, or if we're going to continue this madness?" she asked, her voice cool and smooth.

"You can't possibly hope to stand up against all four Clans now." Oakstar growled, looking as though he wanted to attack her either way.

"Well, of course not. I'm not mouse brained." Ambereye scoffed. There was always something in her voice that had made Mythsong's skin crawl. As though she looked at her peers as particularly bothersome mosquitos. Now was no different. "This was Ghoststar's wild dream, not mine. StarClan has clearly expressed their displeasure for it."

The leaders exchanged skeptical looks but did not press the issue further. "Then GhostClan is hereby disbanded." Falconstar decreed. Looking more confident in himself now, he scaled the rocky cliffs to perch on the Highledge. "GhostClan's members will return to their original Clans if they so wish. Or, if you would rather, you may leave this land now and never return."

Hesitantly, the GhostClan cats began to stand. They separated, returning to their former Clanmates with their tails between their legs. Despite Falconstar's claim that they would be accepted again, it would be a long time before these cats could be trusted again.

With the Clans reassembled, Falconstar lowered his head for a moment. When he raised it again he called out, "I say these words before the spirit of Blackfire, so that she may hear and approve of my choice. Wiseowl will be the new deputy of ThunderClan."

A moment of silence followed his words as everyone looked around for Wiseowl. He was frozen by Crouchpaw and Ivypaw still, staring up at his leader in disbelief. His mouth opened and closed several times, as if he had lost the ability to speak. Finally, he swallowed hard and said, "As you wish, Falconstar."

"Woo! Wiseowl!" Magicnight cheered, bouncing over to the older warrior. "You'll do great, I know it!"

The other assembled cats picked up the cheer, chanting his name and crowding around the embarrassed brown tom. Mythsong only watched from a distance, smiling a little. Wiseowl would make a wonderful leader one day; that much was clear. He was clever and compassionate, and not to mention a powerful force in battle.

Her smile faltered a little. _Where does this leave… Us?_ She couldn't help but think. When they spoke by the lake, Wiseowl had made it clear he had a particular interest in her. Would their relationship change now that he was the deputy?

Mythsong didn't have much time to fret, as Falconstar was speaking again. "While we're all here, I would like Crouchpaw to step forward." the golden tom jumped down from the ledge to meet the startled apprentice. Crouchpaw looked a mess, his fur rumpled and bloodied, and his eyes were dull with grief. He complied with his leader's order, however, stepping forward to meet Falconstar in the center of the clearing.

"I, Falconstar, leader of ThunderClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on this apprentice. He has trained hard to understand the ways of your code, and I commend him to you as a warrior in his turn." Falconstar said, giving the frightened apprentice a warm look. "Crouchpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and protect and defend this Clan, even at the cost of your life?"

"I-I-I do." the ginger tom stuttered.

"Then, by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name." he paused here, staring up at the midday sun. "Crouchpaw, from this moment on you will be known as Crouchstrike. StarClan honors your fierce loyalty and sacrifice, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan."

"Crouchstrike! Crouchstrike!" Wiseowl was the first to take up the cheer, his emerald eyes gleaming with pride when he looked upon his former apprentice. Crouchpaw grinned nervously as the others echoed Wiseowl's call, not sure how to react to all that had happened that day.

"Crouchstrike will keep vigil tonight over the camp." Falconstar went on. "Everyone is welcome to rest with ThunderClan until tomorrow morning. Until then, make yourselves at home and be sure to see the medicine cats." With that the meeting was over, and the gathered cats began to divide into their individual Clans again.

Mythsong was relieved to finally be able to sit down again. She hunkered down next to Magicnight, heaving a great sigh. Her tortoiseshell friend purred gently and began to clean her fur of the dried blood that had matted there. Wiseowl and Crouchstrike joined them soon, sharing tongues as if nothing had happened.

"… Everything's going to be different now, huh?" Crouchstrike finally voiced what they all had been thinking. His vigil didn't being until sundown, so he seemed eager to talk now.

Magicnight shrugged. "It doesn't have to be. We're all still here, aren't we? And we're all still friends." She looked between Wiseowl and Mythsong, giving the latter a knowing smile. "So maybe we've lost a few cats, and maybe a few of us have moved up in the world. But we're still the same, and most importantly we're alive. That's all that really matters to me."

Purring, Mythsong leaned against the outspoken she-cat. "You're right. We haven't changed."

Crouchstrike was frowning, staring at his paws as if it was hard for him to believe what Magicnight said. It was difficult; Mythsong knew. Both of them had lost a sibling that day, someone they thought they had known very well before everything went to hell.

Somehow, it didn't bother Mythsong anymore. When she woke up on the shores of the lake with Wiseowl, Ghoststar had been, for once, the last thing on her mind. Perhaps Racepaw had healed more than just her physical injuries; she would never know. What she did know was that for the first time in a long time, the future looked bright.

As they sat in silence yet again, Magicnight drifted off to sleep, curled up against Mythsong and snoring softly. The sun began to set and Crouchstrike bid them farewell, stepping up to his new duty as a warrior with his chin held high. Left alone together, Wiseowl and Mythsong stared awkwardly at each other's paws for a long moment.

"Mythsong…" he said finally, raising his green eyes to meet her blue ones. "About… What I said at the lake…"

Mythsong offered no response, but did not look away. She had taken note long ago of how stunning his eyes were. They constantly drew her in, promising safety in their emerald depths.

Wiseowl scuffed his paw across the ground. "I've never… Been all that close to another cat, not since Fiercehawk died." He frowned thoughtfully, as if trying to arrange the words properly before saying them. "But when I'm with you, it's like… It feels like the hole he left is filled in."

Still Mythsong did not respond, only nod once, slowly.

"StarClan, this sounds so cheesy." the tom forced a nervous chuckle, though he was becoming increasingly flustered. "I'm really no good at stuff like this. Throw a hundred badgers at me and I'd gladly take them over trying to explain… Something like this."

Mythsong couldn't help but smirk. "We have something in common, then."

Hesitantly, Wiseowl moved closer to her until their pelts were brushing. His was hot with embarrassment, though she rather liked it. The whole world was cold despite the sticky, greenleaf air, but Wiseowl was always warm.

"What I'm trying to say, is…" the brown tom seemed smaller than usual as he swallowed hard. "I want to give… You know… _Us_… A try. Is that okay?"

Mythsong leaned against him, burying her muzzle in his sweet-smelling fur.

"It's more than okay, Wiseowl."

**The End.**

**ooooo**

**It's been a long time in the making, but I finally managed to wrap this one up. Kind of a sappy ending… But I'm happy with it. Though I am pondering a sequel for this, I like for all my stories to be able to stand on their own. And I think I've done this here.**

**As for future stories: I have a few in the earliest stages of planning. Some are Warriors stories, some are not. The next fanfic I write will most likely not be a sequel to this story, but instead follow two characters completely outside of the usual cannon for my Warrior stories. After that, the sequel to this will follow Mythsong again, though it will switch between her and one of Emberstar's kits.**

**For now, I'm out. If/When I start uploading the next story, it won't be until after I've moved into college and settled into my new schedule. Until then, the best way to see what I'm up to is on DeviantART, where my username is also peofun1.**

**Thanks so much for reading, commenting, favoriting, and everything else you wonderful fans have done. It means so much to me that you liked the story, and I implore you to let me know your final thoughts.**

**Until next time!**

**~peo**


End file.
